


Black Feather White Feather

by AlyssIsBadAtWritting



Category: dangonrompa
Genre: Angel Wings, Angst, Gay, Grim Reapers, M/M, Sad, Smut, Wings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-22
Updated: 2020-10-15
Packaged: 2021-03-09 00:00:42
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 17
Words: 70,822
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27025447
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AlyssIsBadAtWritting/pseuds/AlyssIsBadAtWritting
Summary: The third holding place for souls has failed. Purgatory has been obliterated, and with none rule it, souls have found their way into either Heaven or Hell. Which they are not yet ready for. A meeting is called a risky decision is made. The Kind of Heaven and The Queen of Hell will create offsprings that will meet and marry at age 18. Who are these children? What are their siblings like? And what is Queen Junko planing for her innocent offspring Nagito? And can Hajime save him?
Relationships: Hinata Hajime/Komaeda Nagito
Comments: 11
Kudos: 50





	1. The Foolish Plan

The news of the meeting reached all ears in the afterlife. The Reapers conversed about it constantly as they flew over the mortal cities, swinging their scythes lazily. Ever the Angels, who simply loved to say they hated gossip, whispered about it as they deposited souls from their halos. 

The meeting itself was held on the island that was nowhere. Or, maybe the island was an uncharted island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, that humans had never seen or set foot on. So, to humans, it was nowhere as well as non-existent. The island actually quite small, the only thing on it was a singular building. And the one building consisted purely of one singular room, which was furnished quite nicely, with dark oak walls, blood red carpets, and golden chandeliers. 

And there was only one area of sitting. A long oak table polished with such care it was like a mirror. To the left of the head table, the black door to hell stood, skulls and scythes engraved on its doorknob. To the right, a pure white door stood, angel wings engraved onto the heavens door. In between the two, however, there was a third door, it was quite different than the other two. It was a light grey, with a golden doorknob. What was so different about it? It was quite clearly out of commission. For iron bars had placed over it. And those bars were in fact the reason why this meeting was being held in the first place.

However, in that moment, the door matter was irrelevant. For glares where being cast from both sides of the table. Some were sutled, others, more specifically one. Held such intensity it was as tho fire was in between them. That glare-off was between, Kyoko, the Queen of Heaven, and Mukuro, the Princess of Hell. Mukuro's glare was one of jealousy, for she knew that under the table Kyoko was clutching Makoto's hand with all her strength. The Princess secretly longed for someone's hand to hold, however, she was no Queen. That was her sister. 

The King of Heaven was making an attempt to catch The Queen of Hell's eye, so they could quit glaring and begin this meeting. Junko however, seemed far more interested in a chip in her pink nail polish. Makoto squeezed his wife's hand tighter, in slight annoyance towards Junko's rude behavior. Kyoko squeezed back, her frustration with Mukuro was growing by the minute. Makoto lifted his free hand to his mouth and loudly cleared his throat. 

"Well finally, geez," Junko snapped putting her hand down as she spoke in her generic tone, "Thought you guys would never stop staring!"

"Well we've stopped," Kyoko replied sharply. Shooting Mukuro a cold glance for her eyes had wandered over to Makoto. 

Mukuro slammed her fist on the table, rage had begun to course through her veins. "Mind your mouth! " She cried, as her scythe formed in her hand, it was six feet tall and bore a red ribbon on the all-black handle. And as her scythe was formed her wings sprouted from her back, they were black as midnight, and a shower of black feathers fell to the floor as she began to launch at Kyoko. 

"Put it away!" Makoto yelled as he began to yank Kyoko away from harm. However, he did not need to advance. In a split second, Mukuro had been tackled to the floor by a laughing figure named Toko. Who's grey-white wings were spread, due to the sudden action. Mukuro's scythe clattered out of her hands. 

"Restrain her!" Byakuya yelled as Toko brought her trusty scissors to Mukuro's throat, while another angel, named Peko swooped down next to Toko, her sword at the ready. Her boyfriend Fuyuhiko walked with Byakuya to the now restrained Reaper Princess, who was still struggling.

"You've got some fuckin' nerve huh?" Fuyuhiko spat, "Trying to lay hands on the Queen?"

"Let her up," Junko said in a bored tone, she had once again pre-occupied herself with her nails.

The King's two right-hand men turned to Makoto, looking for orders. Makoto turned to Kyoko, she gave a firm nod. So Makoto followed suit. Byakuya ordered Toko off of Mukuro, and Fuyuhiko gave a nod to Peko who placed her sword back in its sheath. The Angels returned to their seats, folding their wings behind their backs until they wear fully tucked away and out of sight. Toko quietly pressed a small razor against her forehead, to resort back to her normal self.

Mukuro returned to her chair, still shaking from the action, Junko, who was nothing but a petty brat, brought this to attention; "My god, for a warrior, you can't even fold up your wings."

Mukuro squeezed her hand into a tight fist, so tightly her fingernails began to slice into her skin. She knew she could say nothing, she was a Princess. Even though she was older and much wiser than Junko, she had once been tricked into gambling her title away. It was a very unexpected loss, which came with a heavy blow.

"We need to stop the fighting," Makoto said calmly, "I think we all know why we're here."

"Yes, as we are now extremely aware of. Purgatory has finally been diminished." Kyoko said with a clear voice. 

"It was gonna happen eventually," Junko muttered as she began to drum her nails on the polished oak, "It had always been ruled by a cross." At this point, her eyes swerved to an anxious Toko, who was nervously chewing on her nails. 

"W-Wait! Y-Y-You've got th-that wrong!" Toko exclaimed as she stuttered so hard, her round glasses began to slip down her nose, "I-I am not a cross. It'-s-s just a birth d-defect!"

"I can consent to that," Byakuya said fiercely, "Toko was tested, and it was indeed confirmed that she is in no way a Reaper in the slightest. The coloring difference in her feathers is mainly an effect due to constant stress."

"T-Th-Thank you, m-master!" Toko cried, her eyes brimmed with tears, and her face blossomed into a dark shade of crimson. Droll ran slightly down her chin. Byakuya rolled his eyes in disgust. Fuyuhiko turned his gaze away from Toko's face in discomfort, Peko continued to look at the Reapers on the right side of the table, making sure none of them were making weird movements. 

"Well, then. What can we do?" Makoto said, letting the stage open up for ideas for his were nothing special. 

"Well clearly, our magic is proving useless against trying to keep the place together," Mukuro said bitterly. 

"And only a cross can rule Purgatory. That was set in stone from the beginning of time." 

"Makoto and Junko could perhaps re-consider-" Mukuro began to say, but was quite quickly cut off when a gloved hand was slammed down on the table. This alarmed everyone on the left side of the table, a.k.a the Reaper side, but the right side of angels almost predicted it. 

"Would you perhaps like a repeat of the events that occurred a few minutes ago?" Kyoko said dangerously, her eyes seemed to scream, 'I dare you'. 

"There, there, kitty," Junko said in a prissy tone. "I would never even dream of having a child with your pathetic excuse for a love interest."

Kyoko knew that she could fire back at Mukuro all she wanted, for she knew that Junko could not give two shits about what happened to her sister. But the purple-haired girl knew where the line was with Junko, and she would never dare to cross it. So Kyoko took the insult, wishing that anyone other than Junko could rule Hell.

"Me and Junko know that we cannot have a child together," Makoto said slightly gaging at the thought of it. "But we also know we cannot leave this issue unsolved. When Purgatory was destroyed, we saw souls that were not yet ready for heaven or hell, enter the vortex, and begin to mess up our system."

"4 fucking million souls, came to bother my poor Tsumugi at the gate." Junko spat at the right side of the table as though it was, in fact, their fault Purgatory failed. 

"Oh my goodness, your worship," The Gate Keeper Reaper Tsumugi cried blushing with excitement, "You should not waste your precious time worried about me!"

On Mukuro's far-right, three other Reapers sat. Tsumgi closest to the two royals, with her long blue hair and plain face, she was a gatekeeper. She had watched the gates of hell ever since Junko had created her, and was more than a loyal servant. On Tsumgi's right, a small girl sat, her name was Monica. She was still quite young, but she had more brains than half the world. But it was not her brains that got her onto Junko's private supervisor's team, it was her love for despair. The last Reaper was sitting farthest to the right and was also struggling not to fall off her chair, was Mikan, Hell's Doctor. She was a miracle worker when it came to any disease (That, of course, was not a curse, if a disease was a curse she could do nothing) and or injury. 

"I don't believe that's she was actually worried about you," Peko said with slight annoyance, she hated how these girls desperately sucked up to a rotten person all the time. 

"Y-Yeah!" Toko added with her usual stutter, "I-It's just pa-pa-pathetic, su-sucking up to such an r-r-Roten h-human."

"Watch it," Byakuya snapped at Toko, he was a man who could care less about someone's view upon him. However, he was very clever and knew that insulting a royal, especially Junko was a death sentence. And Toko was a useful fighter so she needed to be kept around. 

Junko, however, was not even paying attention, she was making numerous posses as she put on what looked like a thinking face. "What are you-?" Mukuro began but was swiftly cut off.

"Shut up!" Junko hissed as she began to make the possess quicker and more rapidly. She continued this observed ritual for another five minutes, much to the angel's dislike. Until at minute six, she stopped so suddenly it made her hench-women flinch. "I've fucking got it!"

"What Big Sis!" Monica cried, jumping up and placing her hands on the table and leaning over to try and see her superior. 

"What if I and shorty were to create our own children, that aren't related to us, and then when they turn 18 or something they can meet, marry, and pump out a kid?" Junko said triumphantly as though she had just provided a solution for world hunger. 

Silence echoed throughout the room. Fuyuhiko had to hold his breath to not stifle a laugh. Peko blinked flabbergasted, Toko's jaw dropped open, and Byakuya proceeded to clean his glasses to pre occupie himself with anything other than that topic. The Reapers exchanged confused glances with one another. Mukuro's eyes went so big, she looked like a bug. Kyoko's face went stone-hard, pure furry coming into her system. Create two children that will only meet to have a child? It sounded wicked. 'These children, to know they only live to serve one purpose. And, they would be shunned. Especially The Reaper. Junko's creations have been shunned from Hell for centuries. It's too cruel.' Kyoko thought. 

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but you wish for me and you to make our own child and then when they turn 18, you want them to meet, get married and have a child that will be tasked to rule over Purgatory?" Makoto asked.

"Ding ding ding! That's exactly right! And sure they can get to know each other beforehand. And they would, of course, be a Reaper and an Angel-"

"No!" Mukuro shouted. 

"Hm? Why not sister?" Junko said, her tone turned airy and light, this was a sign of anger for Junko. She hated interruptions. And she hated it when her sister spoke. 

"Why not? It's wicked! Creating these children, only to just force them into marriage? And then have a kid! It's outrageous! It's sickening in fact. They would be shunned, and they would be alone. I won't stand by it." Mukuro spat, as she slammed her fist against the wood. Kyoko gave her a nod of 'Thank you'. Mukuro nodded back.

More silence. 

"What if they had a sibling?" Makoto whispered. Every head in the room snapped around to look at The King of Heaven. Makoto looked deeply troubled by this idea, but he could not think of anything better.

"Makoto?"

"I hate it too Kyoko. But we need to have a balancing point in this system. And even though the idea is foolish and possibly dangerous. We must do it. Because I can not think of anything else to do." Makoto pressed his palms to his face, deeply frustrated at himself. He knew this was a gamble, he hated relying on his luck, if he had any luck. He was pathetic. But at least he would look strong while being pathetic. "There must be terms."

"I'm good with that," Junko said, as a sly smile formed upon her perfect face. 

"They must have a sibling." Makoto said firmly, this was a point that he did not want to ignore, "And their siblings should be created by Mukuro and Kyoko."

The princess and The Queen nodded, and shook hands. "So, I will create a reaper, who will marry your created angel when they turn 18?"

"Yes," Makoto said

"And, after a year of life, I and Kyoko will create a sibling for our sides child," Mukuro said firmly, gaining more confidence with every word. 

"The children will, of course, collect souls, and will not have powers greater than a normal Reaper or Angel," Kyoko said, she was still extremely hesitant of the idea. She had a suspicion that Junko was up to something. Never had The Queen of Hell suggested something that could be so beneficial to both sides. Kyoko scanned Junko's face, she noticed her smirk growing wider by the second. "And no tricks."

"Tricks? My god, why would I ever try to trick you?" Junko said with a gut-churning giggle. Kyoko still gave her dagger eyes. She knew something was up. She knew that they would have to proceed with caution. 

"Then it's settled," Mukuro said happily, this was a big deal for her, never had she been given such an enormous responsibility. "Now, you two have to make the promise."

Makoto stood from his chair, and let his wings open. His wings were much smaller than the other Angels, due to his short height. White feathers fell from his wings, as a golden halo appeared hovering over his brown hair. The little golden ring seemed to shine brighter than any light ever. Junko also stood up and spread her wings, which were black as midnight. Black feathers fell from her wings as she summoned her scythe. It was 6'5 and was all black, with odd spots of pink liquid on the razor-sharp blade. 

The two rulers reached behind their heads and proceeded to pluck a feather from their wings. They then walked toward one another, feathers extended. After a moment, they touched the tips of the feathers together. Gray and gold light exploded from the tips at the touch. The promise was made. 

Junko threw her feather over her head, and it was caught by little Monica. Who began to blush profusely. "Well then, now that this stupid event is over with, let us go!" Junko sounded to her servants, "I'll start with mine right away Shorty! Send a letter when you want to be born!"

Junko swung the door to hell open, screams of terror entered the room. As well as a gust of icy hot air. Tsumgi, Monica, and Mikan spread their wings and took flight, zooming through the door frame and vanishing from view. Junko then followed suit. 

The only Reaper left in the room was Mukuro, who had dipped into a bow at Kyoko's feet. "I apologize greatly your highness." She said she knew it was right to say sorry to a Queen after trying to start a fight with her. 

"It's fine," Kyoko said simply, "You were angry, we all were. Now hurry up and get back, you might want to supervise your sister."

"Of course," She gave another bow, then spread her wings and flew through the door. Byakuya quickly shut the door.

"Well, that was hell!" He snorted angrily, as he straightened his jacket. 

"Your tellin' me," Fuyuhiko mumbled as he pulled down his jacket cuffs, and re-adjusted his eye patch.

"You shouldn't touch it, young master," Peko whispered, clearly pained by the memory it had caused her. 

"Peko, call me Fuyuhiko, and you did well today." He added, as more pink crept onto his baby face. 

"Oh, s-sh-shut up!" Toko said, jealousy overcoming her, "W-We get it, y-y-you're i-in love!"

"You should be the one to shut up!" Byakuya snapped at his assistant, he grew sicker of her antics by the day, "You should be congratulating them on their love!"

Toko was silent at once. "Come on now, let's get going. Wonderful paperwork awaits us." Byakuya said with an eye roll.

Heaven's finest Angels bowed and exited through the right door. Makoto and Kyoko still remained, however. The silence was heavy between them. A pin could drop and the clang would be heard loud and clear in the silence. Kyoko gently took Makoto's hand, "Do you think she'll create a monster?"

"No, but there will be something about it that will, in fact, be about despair," Makoto said carefully, the thought of doing such a cruel thing to a child was sickening.

"Then what do you intend to do?" 

"Hopefully create a child that can help it overcome this, despair. And hopefully, the sibling can help them too. Do you have any names?"

"I have some."

"Tell me," Makoto whispered as he and his wife spread their wings, and began to walk to the door.

"Well, I'd like the sibling to be a he." She said as a small smile began to form on her face. 

"A boy?"

"I want to name him Shuichi," Kyoko said at once, "I love that name, what about you?"

"Well, I guess Shuichi's gonna have an older brother!" Makoto said with a laugh, as they opened the door to heaven. 

"What is he going to be named?" Kyoko asked as they jumped into the vortex, a swirl of white light meeting their eyes. They flapped their great wings, white feathers blowing behind them, hand in hand.

"You know, I like Hajime."


	2. The Children Of Heaven And Hell

It was a peaceful town, located a couple of hundred miles away from any main cities in Scotland. The air was moist and calm, the waves of the ocean could be heard if one was resting a the far side of town. The town was the definition of ordinary, crimes in the town included a child sometimes stealing sweets. There were also a couple of men in the town, who liked to kid themselves and go hunting in the small woods near the town. Their guns were old, and sometimes fired miss-shots. This was common. 

Which is why nobody even gave a second thought to the three gunshots that wrang out suddenly on a Wednesday afternoon. Nobody would have guessed that those bullets had just taken a life. 

Nagito placed a pale hand over Kokichi's eyes when the Father and Mother shot their seven-year-old child. Once, directly in the chest. They then committed suicide together. Nagito wished that he could erase their wicked laughter from his ears. 

"Is it over?" Kokichi whispered as he hugged his older bothers waist. Kokichi was only a year younger than Nagito, and even though he was 17, he could easily pass as a fourth-grader. With his short stature and oddly colored hair, and childish personality. 

"Yeah," Nagito said gently. Nagito himself looked like a walking sheet of paper. His skin was so pale he seemed to glow in direct sunlight. But he never faced that sunlight. For when he always wore the hood up on his green jacket. Which sadly covered his fluffy white-pink tipped hair. His grey eyes blinked back his headache, as he cleared his throat, "Do you want me to collect them?"

"Sure, I'll make sure she doesn't see," Kokichi said as he gestured toward the pale figure rising from the little girl's dead body, it was not quite a ghost, more of a soul. The little girl's transparent eyes began to look down her dead body however her this was avoided, "Hi there!" Kokichi said cheerfully, bending down to her level (Not with much difficultly) in an attempt to shield her from her murders bodies. "What's your name?"

"Emily," She whispered, a bit surprised by the question, "Um, did I...die?"

Kokichi bit his lip, it hurt to see such a small girl ask such a sad question, but he knew it would be rude not to answer, "Yeah, you did pass away."

"Oh..." Emily muttered, her eyes began to well with tears. "But...I don't wanna be dead!"

"Hey, shhh, it's okay," Kokichi whispered as he wrapped, or more hovered his arms around her soul.

"A-Am I gonna go to a bad place?" She whimpered in between sobs. 

"What? You? No way! Your gonna go to heaven!" He said, putting on his best fake smile, it was true that she was going to heaven, but the question was...

"R-Really?" She said, her tears suddenly began to stop falling. "Granny told me that it's nice there!"

"It's really nice there! They have ice cream and popsicles!"

While Kokichi continued to list off all the wondrous foods in heaven, Nagito was at work. He had summoned his scythe, it was all and black, and a small skull hung from the top of it. He then opened his hand, in which he was holding two small black orbs. They were hot in his palm and seemed to radiate hatred and sorrow. 'I'm not even at your level of low,' Nagito thought fiercely. He then pressed the orbs against the blade of his scythe, after a moment they were locked in its blade. Along with the other hundred thousand souls. He sighed wishing that the other Reapers would just let him and Kokichi join their soul collection groups. 

He pressed his palm to his forehead, his headache had gotten worse. 'Did I forget to take the pain killers? No, don't be even stupider than you are. You know why.' He sealed his eyes shut, wishing the pounding in his head would just stop, and he also wished that this event had not crept up on him so un-expectantly. But he knew to wish away the inevitable was pointless, so he stood up. 

"Do they have mashed potatoes?" Emily asked, her soul was bouncing with excitement, suddenly she not sad anymore. She, in fact, was quite thrilled to have been such a well behaved girl. Well in other's view, not in the view of her insane parents.

"Of course!" Kokichi said, he then turned to see Nagito spreading his wings ready to pack it in for the day, "Hey Emily, I have to go now."

"Huh? Wait, then who's gonna take me to heaven-"

"No don't worry!" Kokichi said waving his hand quickly, "The Angles will be here as soon as we leave! And they're gonna take you right there!"

"Alight! Thank you, nice boy!" She said with the kindest smile, she then gave Kokichi a little kiss on the check as a thank you. Emily then plopped down on the floorboards and started singing the A B C's. 

Kokichi stood up, gave a little wave, and turned to his brother. Kokichi's face was full of hurt. But it was time to go. They both spread their great black wings. Kokichi's wings were quite small, due to the fact that he was 5'1. Nagito's wings were long and muscular. Which seemed morbidly ironic, considering that Nagito was as skinny as a twig and was down to flesh and bones on his body. Their wings however shared two similarities, they wear both feathered and black as midnight. But a very noticeable thing on their wings was a scar. Or more specifically, two scars. 'Q P'. The letters were large and looked as though they wear never once treated, leaving more scar tissue and making the letters all the more noticeable.

"Open!" Nagito yelled at the ceiling. Instantly they were absorbed by a flash of light. They entered the vortex, a shower of black feathers fell from the spot they had just disappeared from. But nothing else showed any sign that two Reapers were just there. Soul collectors, we're a force that one could never see unless that person is on the brink of death. Death was such an easy thing to sure come too, Nagito and Kokichi knew that very well. But, they also had to learn how to cope with their tasks alone. In hell, Reaper's were forced to serve for eternity, so all the reapers got to know each other very well. They welcomed all the new Reapers, except for any of Junko's creations. The residents of hell despised their ruler, and anything that was associated with her was scum and was ignored. The two boys grew up alone, learning every single day that the living world is trash and that the world of the dead is worse. 

Kokichi always tried to be upbeat about it though, he tried using his masterful talent of lying to his advantage. However Nagito sometimes made a fool of his brother's talent, he always knew when his little brother was spinning the truth. He knew most of the time it was just Kokichi's attempt to make him feel better about his life task, but he hated that his brother was lying to him, and also himself. 

...

Hajime swopped out from the vortex as soon as the Nagito and Kokichi disappeared into it. He landed in the middle of the room, white feathers showering of his wings and landing into a pile of black ones. Hajime was tan for an Angel, he had a muscular body and light-dark grey-brown hair. He had olive eyes and wore a glare on his face. He had missed them again. Once again, he was left with a pile of feathers, and had not even gotten a glimpse of the person he was supposed to marry. 

"Are you guys here to take me to heaven?" Emily asked, jumping up with excitement, or more a less floating up. 

"Y-Yeah, are you ready?" Shuichi said, stuttering in the beginning and cursing in his brain about his slip up. 

"Yes yes! Please take me!"

"Ok," Shuichi, who still had his wings opened, removed the halo from his hatted head. The halo was quite small, but in actuality, it was holding hundreds of souls, it was quite a busy day for the brothers. They told themselves that they had to go all out before the event tomorrow. Shuichi was actually moving quite fast, there was a certain someone that was leaving today and he desperately wanted to see her off. "Now, when your ready just touch your finger to it, and we'll take you right to heaven!"

In less than a millisecond, Emily had pressed her tiny finger to the halo. There was a small pop! And the little girl had been safely secured in the halo. Shuichi gave a tiny smile, placed the halo bach above his hat, and turned to face his brother. Who was still sulking about missing the Reapers. 

"Why are you so obsessed with trying to see them?" Shuichi asked as he approached his brother.

"I don't know," Hajime muttered, he was trying to ease his frustration for even he didn't really understand why he was so obsessed with it, "Maybe, I just wanna know before I jump into in? I mean this was a pathetic excuse for a plan to fix Purgatory. She's probably...whatever. Let's just head back, you want to see Kaede off right?"

"Yeah, let's go," Shuichi said as a blush crept up his cheeks. Was the boy in love with Kaede? Yes, and no. He loved her very much, sometimes romantically, more sometimes like a sister. Kaede decided to do service as an angel mainly so she could get out of heaven and be reincarnated. She was always trying to find another way to do more. Never was she resting, always working to try new things. 

"Open!" Hajime yelled as he re-opened his white wings, his and Shuichi's wings were perfect, down to the tip of the feathers. A light flashed and soon the pair were flying through a sparkling tube, there was a wind rushing against their faces as they swooped towards the right like they always did. They then began to pump their wings at top speed, flying as fast as they could. Until they burst out of the tube and were as usual blinded by the white lights of heaven. 

Heaven was like a world of clouds, souls flew around in the sky, and would land on the streets of the city. The city didn't have a name, but it was perfect. There were homes spread out all over for the souls, they had everything they would ever need. The Angels lived in the castle, which looked over the city, Makoto and Kyoko also lived in that castle, as well as Hajime and Shuichi. 

Hajime and Shuichi flew through the gates, which were always open. They swooped upward, to the third tower, they had lived in that tower since birth. It was perfectly suited to their lives, and it had everything they could ever ask for. They landed on the balcony and tucked in their wings, only to then notice a figure inside the building.

"Byakuya?" Shuichi asked with curiosity, and also some urgency. He wanted to see Kaede. Toko was also there, furiously picking up clothes from the floor. "Um, Toko?"

"The King wants to speak with you both," Byakuya snapped, he seemed slightly angry about the number of clothes on the floor, "It's a damn pig stye in here! I did not teach you brats to be slobs!"

When the brothers were younger, Makoto and Kyoko enlisted Byakuya and Toko to watch over them. Toko taught the two how to fly, and Byakuya coached them both with lessons about reading and writing, and he also was the one to tell Hajime of his purpose. The talk was less than pleasant. In short, the young boy threw a hissy fit and refused to do anything for four days. But they didn't talk about it afterward.

"Wait, can we please push it too later?" Shuichi begged, "Kaede! She's being reincarnated today, please Byakuya, I want to be there!"

Byakuya gave a long sigh, adjusted his glasses, and said; "The King and the Queen have to be there to reincarnate her Shuichi, do you remember anything?"

"Oh..." Shuichi said embarrassed, he was a kind boy, but he problems with saying the right thing when he was nervous. 

"Y-You better t-t-teach, you're k-kid how t-t-to clean, Ha-Hajime." Toko snapped, as she threw a bundle of clothing into the laundry shoot. 

Hajime felt his stomach drop several inches. The sudden mention of a child brought back all over sadness and anger, as well worry. He looked down at the plush velvet carpet, that seemed to be mocking him. He almost wanted to be that carpet, 'What am I even thinking? It wouldn't be any better if I was a carpet,' He thought to himself. Byakuya swiftly cleared his throat and spread his wings and walked to the balcony, Toko followed suite. 

"Come on you two," He called.

"You ok?" Shuichi asked gently as he placed his hand on his brother's shoulder. Hajime removed Shuichi's hand hastily and made his way towards the door. As he passed, Shuichi caught a glimpse of his face, which had hardened into an angered expression. Shuichi bit his lip as the four took to the sky, knowing that this was not gonna be a fun talk.

...

"Nagi?" Kokichi called from the other side of the trapdoor, he then gave a hesitant knock. "Nagi, it's me, I've got food."

"I'm fine Kokichi, not hungry," Nagito called back, which was a lie, his stomach was empty. But he had convinced himself that because his head hurt so much, that he would probably just throw up anything he ate. Which was true in some ways, but wrong in others. Of course, there was no way that Nagito could die from starvation, he was a Reaper. He would only feel like he was dead if he continued to starve himself. Which was the only feeling he had gotten used to in his 18 years of life. 

Kokichi opened the trap door, anyway, to the 69th room on their tower, which was Nagito's bedroom. There was practically nothing in the room, only a small desk, and a large bed. The bed was actually hidden behind black curtains. It was almost like a cave. Nagito had spent most of his childhood behind those curtains. Hiding from the cruel world. Kokichi was always trying to get him out of his room, by playing silly games like hide-and-seek, tag, and find that thing. Nagito would play for a while, but then he would disappear behind the curtains again. This only started to happen after an event from when he was eight years old, Kokichi experienced it too. But not as bad as Nagito never has bad as Nagito. 

"I have bagels..." Kokichi whispered, his lip began to tremble. He hated seeing his brother like this, he knew something was wrong. But Nagito would always insist that it was okay. Kokichi wished that he could be seven again. Nagito had the brightest smile in the world, and he was incredible. He taught Kokichi how to fly, and how to collect souls. Which he had learned how to do by himself. Kokichi wanted that Nagito back, not this shell of his brother. But he bit his lip, he wouldn't want Nagito to feel worse. "There was no plain, but they had sesame."

Silence. Then Nagito pulled the curtain aside, and Kokichi sat down on his bed. Nagito had been reading a book, there was a candlelit on the bed frame. Nagito had his hood down for once and was also wearing his hideous reading glasses. 

"Whatcha reading?"

"Call Me By Your Name," Nagito said, as he set down his book, and picked up a bagel.

"Is it good?" Kokichi asked as he pulled a pack of gummies from his pocket.

"I just got it today, and have you eaten dinner?"

"Nagi, don't be dumb bagels aren't dinner!" Kokichi said in his childish tone, he smiled. Nagito seemed to be showing some emotion other than a blank slate.

"And neither are fruit snacks, I swear you like a child..." He began to trail off. Nagito bit his tongue, almost as if he had just tasted something bad. The silence began to fill the air. 

"Hey, is it about...tomorrow?" Kokichi asked, clearly already knowing the answer. After he asked the question he regretted it, he tried to cover his error by saying, "Don't worry, your gonna be a great Dad!"

More silence.

"Do you, not wanna...?"

"No, I do." Nagito said quickly, "It's just the whole, you know. Marriage thing. I mean, she's, a...she."

"Oh," Kokichi whispered. 'Does he really know that?' The purple-haired boy thought quickly. 

"But, I do want children. I know how to take care of them don't I?" Nagito said in a playful manner, nudging his brother's shoulder.

"Don't get cocky, you did an oooookay job," Kokichi said in a narcissistic tone. Nagito then gave a small 'Heh'. But Kokichi could tell that it was forced. Kokichi gave a sigh, his attempts to help his brother were once again failing. 

"Now what's wrong with you? I know, it's annoying to be around the scum of hell," Nagito muttered that last party, but Kokichi had good hearing. 

"Your not scum and I guess I'm a bit nervous about meeting their sibling."

"Lie."

"Well, I am a bit nervous! But honest god, I'm more worried about you! You look like a fuckin' twig."

"Language Kokichi,"

"No! You scare me, Nagi! You have been off for years, but you've just been getting worse lately, and you're too skinny! I care about you, you know that right?" Kokichi yelled as he grabbed Nagito's hand, and tried to catch his eyes. 

Nagito had ducked his head, his eyes were starting to sting, the pain in his head was growing unbearable. He wanted to just take a sleeping pill and drop into a deep sleep, one of which he could never wake up from. At least his head wouldn't feel like hell. He never wanted someone that would end up caring about him. When Kokichi was first created, Nagito almost wanted to send him to earth, and pray that he would lose is powers. He never wanted to put Kokichi into a state of worry. 'Maybe it's just the bad luck part of the cycle?'

Nagito had always found himself in a constant cycle of bad luck good luck, for example, his bad luck was that Kokichi was born just to be a sibling for him, his good luck in that situation was that he developed a relationship with someone. Something that had never happened to him. Nagito was obsessed with this cycle, his entire life seemed to be influenced by it. 

But that didn't mean that he didn't care. He loved Kokichi more than could ever dream of loving himself. And he hated the fact that his brother knew of his suffering, and that his suffering was making his brother suffer. 

"Kokichi, I care about you a lot. And I know that I've been doing bad lately, but I promise I'm going to go to Mikan and try and get something to make me feel better." Nagito said, as he placed his hands on his brother's shoulders, and put on his best poker face. 

"Do you promise?"

"Yes, I promise," He couldn't promise, medication to make one feel happier was close to illegal in hell. But maybe, maybe he could find some. But it would be hard, and he knew that he would most likely quit after a day or two. But he could never tell Kokichi that, he could not break his heart more. Kokichi then pulled Nagito into a tight hug, whispering thank you over and over again. 

"Can I stay here tonight?" Kokichi asked as he pulled out of the hug. He wore a smile on his face, and he seemed to be ecstatic from happiness. 

"Of course," Nagito said, as he took a bite of his bagel. The two sat and spoke for ten more minutes until Nagito told Kokichi to start getting ready for bed. After the two had washed up for bed, Kokichi said goodnight to his brother and then fell into a slumber. 

Nagito however, stayed awake. His smile left his lips, and he stood up. He put on his normal clothes again and pulled his hood over his fluffy white hair. He then looked back at his little brother. Nagito brought his hand to his cheek to wipe away the small tear running down his face. He then readjusted something on his ring finger that had slid around a bit from rubbing his face. 

The boy left his room through the trap door and came down to the 68th floor. There was not a single thing in this room. But there was the entrance to the balcony, which Nagito took too. He leaped off the balcony, his wings thumping against Hell's hot air. He flew over The City of The Reapers, ignoring their jeers as he passed. He flew over The Path of Suffering, for he did not have to energy to walk and deal with the spirits. He flew through the gate, giving Tsmugi quite the scare. Nagito then entered the vortex, which was scalding hot and dark. When he finally exited, he was in Tokyo on top of a hill. Mikan was waiting for him just as he had told her.

"H-Hello Nagito!" Mikan said with her usual stutter.

"Hi Mikan, do you have to pills?"

"Yes, as you know this will not actually cure your-"

"Yes yes, just act as slight pain relief, I know," Nagito said impatiently, he was very close to ripping his head off. Mikan sensed his urgency and quickly handed him the bottle. Nagito threw two into his mouth, and his head instantly felt lighter. "Thanks again Mikan,"

"W-Wait! N-Nagito, have you been eating? I need to know,"

"Why?"

"Well, you look q-quite thin, I-I've seen Re-Reapers w-who have tri-tried to starve themselves. F-Forced s-starvation, es-especially over long periods of time, c-can greatly affect ones flying ability. S-So I need to know if you've been eating, my beloved would not want to be embarrassed by you if you cannot fly." Mikan said, her face growing red as she said 'My Beloved'.

Nagito gave a sigh, Mikan was a really kind person, if it wasn't for Junko, she might have been an angel. "I haven't eaten in a week or two, and I just had a bagel about 30 minutes ago,"

"Eeek!" Mikan cried out, she nearly toppled at that news, "No no! You can't be doing that! H-Here, have s-some protein tablets! They will help you!"

Mikan then, very aggressively, shoved a bundle of pills into Nagito's other hand. "Please please take them Nagito, you might lose your ability to fly, I mean you're already..." Mikan then stopped herself.

"Mikan, I know I am," Nagito whispered, he then walked past her, to get a clearer view of the stars, he could hear the ocean crashing in the distance. Places like this in the human world we're so beautiful, and peaceful. But Nagito knew, that in another place at this very moment, someone was being raped, or murdered, or beaten. He always heard people talking about how there were always children being born, and how that's as good. But what those people turned a blind eye too, was the fact that many of those children would not make it to one year off life. And some others would grow up in abusive households, where they would be subjected to things worse than death. The world was cruel, Nagito when he was younger, always tried to ignore that horrible fact. But a certain someone made him realize that clinging to stupid thoughts like that, was one of the worst things one could do. "Honestly Mikan, I want it to happen soon,"

"Oh, Nagito..."

...

"Hajime, you are not getting out of this!" Makoto snapped the brunet, who was three seconds away from storming out of the castle. 

"I know that! But I not going through it!"

"Why now are you being so resistant?" Kyoko demanded, she too was growing angry. "You've known this was going to happen for a while now! So please do tell why you acting like a two-year-old."

"Because it's my life! I'm not going to marry some petty clone of Junko," Hajime spat viciously, he was abnormally angry, he had so much pent up frustration pouring out of him, his wings had opened. 

Shuichi stood awkwardly behind Hajime, he had kept quiet silent this whole time. An angry Hajime was not something he wanted to deal with. Makoto pressed his hands to his face, and Kyoko heaved a deep sigh. The two also did not want to deal with an angry Hajime, they had just wanted to tell the boys that they had to be in the throne room at noon the next day. But the older brother had thrown another hissy fit. 

"Hajime, I think you've had your spotlight for a while, how about you save your yelling for later? Hm? I believe someone wants to be reincarnated." Kyoko snapped at Hajime, as she gestured to the doors, which had opened. Kaede stood in the doorway, she wore a beautiful smile on her face.

"Shuichi!" She cried out as she ran down the hall and flung her arms around the boy, who collapsed by the sudden weight. 

"K-Kaede! I-I can't breathe!" 

"Silly Shuichi! If you can still talk, you can still breathe! But I'll let you up," Kaede said in a teasing tone to her friend, as she realized him from her hug, and turned to face the King and Queen.

"Hello Kaede," Makoto said warmly, a smile had grown on his face, he loved when Angel was able to have another chance of life. Kyoko also was smiling, she had taken a liking to Kaede, practically everyone had. 

"Your Majesty," Kaede said, bowing deeply. 

"Whenever your ready, to go," Kyoko said kindly.

Kaede turned to Shuichi and Hajime. "Um, well. Wow, this is incredibly awkward!" She said with a laugh.

"I guess this is goodbye..." Hajime muttered, he was still very angry about...well everything. He was then smacked in the back of the head by Kaede, "Ow! What the hell was that for?"

"You being a jerk on my reincarnation! Hajime, can you please lighten up? Like please?" Kaede snapped, rolling her eyes. 

"What? I am not..." But Hajime stopped himself, Shuichi had wrapped his arms around his friend. Hajime could hear him sniffling. 

Shuichi was crying for one of two reasons, one because it had finally hit him. Kaede was going to leave, disappear. She was going to be reborn into the mortal world, and she would not remember anything. The second thing Shuichi realized, was how much Kaede meant to him. Kaede at that moment seemed less like a good friend, and more like, someone he loved. 

"Please don't go..." Shuichi whimpered. It was comical and childish, sure. But it was all the poor boy could think to say, he had never really lost someone, or something, especially something that meant so much to him. 

"Hey, it's okay," She whispered, rubbing her friends back to give some feeling of reassurance, see too had strong feelings for the boy, in fact, she probably felt these feelings for him from the moment they had met. "Shuichi, I...I want to do this."

"I know, but I wish you could just..." He trailed off, knowing it was pointless to try and change her mind. Kaede was an unstoppable force. He squeezed his eyes shut, knowing that he was only making this more difficult for her. 'It's a selfish way to think,' He thought bitterly, 'I shouldn't be crying all over her, I should be...saying goodbye.' 

"Shuichi, I'm ready, anything you want to say before I go?" Kaede asked sweetly, as she pulled away from him and placed her hands on his shoulders.

"I-I...I...love...you," Shuichi whispered, his words slipped off his tongue with great difficulty, but they held great meaning. He realized that what he felt towards her was some mutual friendship nonsense, it was love. 'God, I must be stupid...' Shuichi thought as he lowered his head, to avoid eye contact with her. But he then felt the weight being removed from his head, and he felt the small spike in his icey green-grey-blue hair pop up. And then he felt soft lips press against his cheek.

"Me too..." Kaede whispered, she then placed Shuichi's hat back on his head, and walked away beaming, she halted for a moment at Hajime who stood with his mouth hanging wide open. "See ya Hajime!" She said blatantly, trying not to laugh at his expression. She then finally came to stand in front of the King and Queen of Heaven. "I am ready."

"Very well," Makoto said, he then stood with Kyoko and walked up to the girl, who had knelt before them for the final time. The King and Queen then lay their hands gently on top of Kaede's blonde hair. "I Makoto, King Of Heaven, on this day, chose to bring Kaede Akamatsu, back to the world of the living. Does Kaede Akamatsu accept my choice?" 

"I do," Kaede said as she wiped a tear from her cheek.

"Well, then, goodbye Kaede, live well."

There was a blinding flash of white light. And then a burst of gold. Hajime and Shichi shielded their eyes from the light. When the light faded, Kaede was gone. Every single part of her was gone. Except for one thing, a hairpin. It was shaped like a music note, and it was made out of fine silver. It was her remembrance token. Any being that lived in the afterlife had some sort of token, or at least angels did. It was quite unheard of for Reapers. The token could be anything, from a necklace to a piece of clothing. But it had to be very special to the person in order for it to be their token. If the owner of the token was to pass away or be reincarnated, it was usually always the first one, the token would reveal who it belonged too. That person would then receive instructions from the token to know what to do with it. Tokens were basically unofficial wills, that held great power.

This was why it was quite odd when Kaede's token did not say it's taker's name, it only said this; "I've decided to not have a token will, because, well...why would I even need one?"

Shuichi gave a smile. ''Classic Kaede...''


	3. What If It Was A Boy...?

Hajime returned to his room that night still in cold furry, and frustration. He, however, did not dare to bother Shuichi about it. Shuichi told his brother that he needed some time alone. The walls were thin, and the brother's rooms were next to one another, so Hajime knew he would only be more a jerk if he walked in on his brother crying.

The second the brunets head hit the pillow, he instantly flipped around and began to furiously assault his poor pillow. Hajime furiously muttered curse words under his breath, as he pounded his pillow to the state of flat nothingness. He did this for about thirty minutes, or until his arms were so tired, he could even lift them for another punch.

"Hajime," Someone said calmly, but firmly. Hajime whipped his head around to see Kyoko standing in his doorway, still wearing her formal clothes, even though it was midnight. "You've upset your Father-"

"He is not my Father, never has he ever once been my Father!"

"Well, you called him Dad up until you found out about the plan," Kyoko said monotonously as she stepped into his room, and began to walk towards him.

"No Father would subject their child to torture like this,"

"Oh, please," Kyoko said with an eye roll, "You really think this is torture? Hajime, it's just marriage, and then a child. A child that will help us, and you get to be the Father, is that really torture?"

"YES!" Hajime yelled, "The torture is that I'm marrying one of that witches minions! They're probably gonna be crazy! And a despair freak! And I'll bet she's gonna look just like the monster!"

"How can you be so sure?"Kyoko snapped, "Have you seen them?"

"No..." Hajime's voice had suddenly grown weaker, he had been contradicted, it was something that he often could not handle. Hajime hated being wrong, but what he hated more than being wrong, was being told he was wrong. When Hajime was ever proven wrong in any sort of statement, he would start to hesitate. It was considered a downright fear by Makoto, he had always noticed how my Hajime hated correction. Hajime would go out of his way to avoid it sometimes, by talking fast and not allowing others to voice their opinion about it. He was better about it than before, but he still struggled a lot.

"Have you ever seen Junko? No. And you have never seen her creation, so how can you judge them? How can you come to a conclusion when you haven't even solved the case? Why do you insist on assuming Hajime? And why can you not go into this situation without an open mind? Is it so impossible?" Kyoko snapped at Hajime, she had almost had it with the boy, she strongly disliked people who constantly made assumptions.

Hajime remained silent, she had got him good. "Why are you here again?"

"I'm here to collect your apology for your Father," Kyoko said sharply ignoring Hajime's nasty tone of voice.

"I'm sorry..." Hajime mumbled in defeat.

"Great, now do get some sleep. We wouldn't want you falling asleep tomorrow," Kyoko said swiftly and curtly as she turned on her heel and left Hajime's room to say goodnight to Shuichi. Kyoko and Shuichi always seemed to be on good terms, they had similar interests, and Hajime knew that Kyoko cared greatly for Shuichi. He remembered how he always called her Mommy as a child. It seemed like a fantasy relationship for Hajime, who for no real reason could not stand   
Makoto. It was mostly his arrogance but partly his unwillingness to ask for help. Even when it had been offered to him. Makoto had always attempted to bond with Hajime, the two actually had been quite close before the plan was revealed to Hajime. After Hajime was told, he was, of course, outraged, even as a young boy, he thought it was, "Ducking bull poop,". And as his hatred grew greater for the plan, he needed to find a person to blame. So he went for Makoto. Unfair? Yes. A coping mechanism? Absolutely.

Hajime irritably pulled off his tie and shirt. Flinging them across the room as hard as he could. He then proceeded to pull out his drawers looking for something to wear to bed, which made more of a mess of his room. He eventually just gave up and stripped down to his underwear and crawled into bed. Only then realizing that he had left the lights on, he then dragged himself back across the room. Mumbling curses under his breath furiously. After he had punched the lights off, he threw himself back into his large bed, burying himself in the covers.

He lay in bed for an hour or two, tossing and turning. Altho his body begged for sleep, his brain was more awake than ever. Rage and restlessness filled his head, he smacked his forehead in frustration with his mind. He just wanted to sleep, but his brain just wanted to imagine. 'What would they look like? Act like? Sound like? Would they be stupid or smart? Would they be ugly or beautiful? What if it was a boy?...What if it was?'

"A boy...?" Hajime said out loud. He expected himself to shudder, or shake his head. But he didn't... "Why am I not...completely against that idea?" He whispered, his rage seemed to vanish, for pure wonder and confusion with himself had taken over him. What if it was a boy? His reaction had changed, he had always guessed it was a girl, but a sudden guess that his future partner might be a boy...it didn't make him angry. 'I wouldn't mind...if they were...a boy.' He thought. Hajime's cheeks suddenly grew hot. Never had the thought of girls done that to him. Girls were on a different level of understanding for Hajime. They were so overpowering, and so, odd for him. Hajime had never had feelings for anybody, so he did feel guilty thinking these things. ''But, why should I...? Is it wrong to find girls unattractive? Is it really wrong for me to...wish it could be a boy? No...it is. It will be a girl, why am I even thinking like this? I-I'm wrong, it's wrong to think that, yeah, wrong..."

But was it? Was it really?

...

When Nagito woke up the next morning, his head ached but his stomach was aching more. He had not taken any of the protein tablets. When he flew home the previous night, everything was fine. Not once did his wings fail. So he thought it irrelevant to take the protein tablets. 

Kokichi was already awake when Nagito woke up, fully dressed, and showered. He was also failing at trying to put a braid in his purple hair. Kokichi always liked doing his hair, even though it was one of the very few things he was bad at. So Nagito had always ended up doing it for him.

"Moring Nagi!" Kokichi said cheerfully, he flashed his brother a wide smile.

"Do you want me to do it?" Nagito said with a small laugh as he exited his cave. He walked over to his little brother who had once again given up on trying to do his hair, "How many do you want?"

"Just one, I'm trying to make an impression!"

Nagito's fingers carefully wove and twisted Kokichi's hair, trying his best not to pull too hard. When they were younger, Nagito once accidentally pull his hair, and in return, he received the cold shoulder for a few days. Calling Kokichi childish, sometimes seemed like an understatement.

"What time do we have to be there?" Kokichi asked hesitantly as Nagito, finished the braid. Which was perfect, not a hair poking from the folds. Nagito also began to re-tie Kokichi's checkered bandana, for he found the knot to not be as perfect as he wished.

"Noon, so about an hour before we have to go," Nagito answered as he double knotted the bandana. He then walked over to his dresser and pulled out his usual. A white t-shirt, and black jeans, as well as undergarments. He took his clothes, along with his green jacket, down with him to the sixtieth floor. This floor was the bathroom, and it was surprisingly the only one in the enormous tower.

Nagito stripped and turned the shower to the hottest possible setting. Steam clouded the glass doors that surrounded him, this was a necessary precaution for him, for he would do anything possible to prevent Kokichi from seeing what he did in the shower. He picked his shaving razor, and as hard as he could, slammed it against the foggy glass doors. One on the razor blades plopped out, it fell to the black marble floor with a small clang. Nagito picked it up with shaky fingers, there were stains of blood on the sharp part of the razor. He mentally cursed himself, if Kokichi was to find blood on a razor, he would start to figure it out pretty quickly.

Nagito brought the razor to his left wrist and performed his addiction quickly. Making quick and small slashes against his skin, careful to make them as small as possible, for if he ever was found out, he could make up some story about it. 'Besides...large cuts are just too obvious.' He thought to himself. After he had finished his daily routine of self-harm, he brought the small blade under the scalding hot stream of water. This was the most humiliating part for him, having to clean up his patheticness. But he was not pathetic, but he could never believe that.

He then washed his hair very well, scrubbing his scalp very hard before washing out the suds. He then washed every inch of his body, he hated smelling terrible, and he hated when he was dirty. He then put conditioner in his hair, it was just something he liked to do. When he finally finished his shower, he shut the water off and stepped out. He towel-dried his hair to the best of his ability and put on his usual clothes. He looked at himself in the mirror, he noticed how to lose his shirt was, and how prominent his collarbone was. "Heh, I am quite thin aren't I?" He muttered to himself with a small laugh. He felt his left hand twitch, a sharp sting suddenly came from his wrist. Nagito however, ignored this pain, 'Isn't that the point...?' He thought, bitterly.

"Hey, Nagi?" Kokichi called from the other side of the door, Nagito jump quite a bit, Kokichi's call had interrupted his thoughts. "We need to start heading down! It's five minutes to noon!"

"O-Okay," Nagito whispered, as he pulled his sleeves down to the fullest extent. He then pulled his hood over his hair, this earned him a glare from Kokichi.

"Ya know, you look way better with your hood down!" Kokichi said as they started to make their journey back up to the 68th floor.

"I disagree but you entitled to your opinion," Nagito muttered, in an attempt to brush off the compliment, "And you should be giving out meaningless complements Kokichi,"

"Nagi, stop being so self-deprecating! I mean it!" Kokichi said, he then attempted to jump up and flick his brother's forehead. However, his little hand only made it up to Nagito's chin, for Kokichi was 5'1, and Nagito was...much taller.

As the two finally came upon the 68 floor's balcony, Nagito halted. One because another sting of pain came from his wrist, and two because he suddenly felt a boulder of anxiety dump on his shoulders. He suddenly felt like he had to bend down to take a breath, his breath seemed to have fallen flat. He let out a gasp, Kokichi's head whipped around.

"Nagi! What's wrong? Are you ok?" Kokichi cried as he gripped his brother's thin arms.

"Y-Yeah, heh, I'm just a bit nervous," Nagito said, forcing out a chuckle in an attempt to distract himself from hyperventilation, "I guess I just realized the situation that's about to occur, and that's why I'm scared."

Kokichi tilled his head to the side, carefully formulating his words before they spilled from his mouth, "Well, aren't you excited?"

"Huh?" Nagito asked as he drew in another deep breath in an attempt to calm himself, "What do you mean Kokichi?"

"Wellllllll, you know, we are meeting the people were supposed to marry...I'm excited!" Kokichi said with a little jump, clearly proud of his statement.

"You don't have to marry anyone," Nagito said with an eye roll as he began to straighten up. "But... I will admit that I am a bit excited."

"Sameeeee! Now let's go!! I can't wait anymore!" Kokichi said as he ran towards the balcony, and lept off, spreading his wings open at the final moment, and taking to the sky.

Nagito smiled as he saw his brother take flight. His flying style was so...free. Kokichi always seemed to fly in a goofy way, but at the same time, he was in perfect control of himself. Not once dropping when he didn't need to. But at the same time, he had fun with his flying. Nagito envied his brother in that way, he longed to be as carefree as Kokichi was at that moment. But still clenched his fist as he spread his black feathered wings, and took to the blood-red sky of hell.

...

"Does my hair look okay?"

"No it just looks different, it's been a while since I've seen you without the hat," Hajime replied honestly as he straightened his tie for the millionth time.

"Well, maybe we all need a change of pace," Shuichi said as he quietly tucked his hat into his back pocket. He was wearing the same outfit he always wore. The only difference for him was that his black baseball cap was off, and a small piece of his hair stood up.

Hajime had not put much effort into his outfit, for he wore the same thing he always wore. But, altho he would not ever admit it, he had secretly tried to style his hair that morning. He tried hair gel, heat, and many more things, in an attempt to get his hair to stop looking like a pinecone. However, nothing worked. And he had to take a second shower to get all of the product out of his brown hair.

"Ok..." Shuichi said, his words wavering between fear and excitement, "I guess we should head over to the throne room?"

"Yeah whatever," Hajime mumbled as they too walked onto their balcony and took flight, the two were dead silent as they flew into the main part of the castle. When they finally landed on the carpeted floor, did Hajime want to turn around and make a run for it, "Let's go..."

"Really?" Shuichi asked as he caught his brothers arm, "That's certainly not like you,"

"What? Being scared?"

"No trying to chicken out," Shuichi said simply, Hajime's face went red from embarrassment. He then yanked his arm from Shuichi's grasp and started making his swift walk towards the throne. Shuichi himself held back a laugh.

When the two brothers finally reached the throne, there was already someone waiting for them. Kyoko stood, arms crossed, and tapping her foot. "You two were almost late." She said sharply.

"Sorry," They both muttered, Shuichi looked sorry, Hajime looked like he was thinking of something completely different as he muttered the apology.

"Alright, it's noon, it's time to go, put these on," Kyoko said as she handed the two boys blindfolds.

"Um, why do we need to wear these?"

"No reason," Kyoko muttered, even though there was clearly a reason. Hajime, with raised eyebrows, placed the blindfold over his eyes, completely shutting out the light. "Alright, now that you two can't see, listen. I am going to take you two to the island that we have prepared for you guys. I want you to learn the way through the vortex without your eyes because it will be much different than the normal vortex for you two. And relying on vision can be dangerous. So pay attention to my turns. When we get there, you two are not to speak or take off your blindfolds until I say so. And don't fret, your new friends will be doing the same thing we are doing. Got it?"

"Yeah, um, are you gonna leave after we take our blindfolds off?" Shuichi asked hesitantly.

"Yes, I and Mukuro will be leaving you four alone. Any other questions? No? Good, we're running late. Open your wings, and take my hands," Kyoko said quickly. Hajime felt for her gloved hand, and once he got a good grip on it, he heard Kyoko cry, "Kyoko! Hajime! Shuichi!"

Then he felt himself being sucked upwards like he was shooting up like a bullet that would never slow or stop. He started to beat his wings cluelessly, he was so unsure. He then felt himself being pulled to the right. Hajime started to change his direction to the right but then he was pulled left. This continued twice more, and then he felt his feet slam very hard against a rug.

He knew instantly that they had arrived, for new smells had filled his nose. He could tell immediately that the place they were in was made primarily of wood, and the wood would appear to be new, everything smelt new. But he also smelt, fruit snacks? But, only the grape kind? But another smell filled his nose, this one far more pleasant, a sort of soft clean scent, that made Hajime feel...safe.

"You're a bit late," A voice said, it certainly was not Kyoko's, it was much firmer and docile. Hajime felt Kyoko's hand rip away from his.

"Sorry, these two take pleasure in being late," Kyoko said Hajime could hear her boots walking across the rug. "I say, they've grown up."

"Don't we all?" The person Hajime assumed to be Mukuro said, "Well then, should be going?"

"Yes we shall, alright you four, you may remove your blindfolds, play nice, Kyoko!" She finished by shouting her name.

"We can see you guys, so nothing bad, Mukuro!"

Time seemed to freeze for Hajime. He wanted to rip his blindfold off, but he also didn't. He wished for a moment that he could stay naive forever. For he knew, that as soon as he removed his blindfold he would be aware, and that was terrifying. But he needed to know. Too long had he been in the dark, he had always hated the dark. So he pulled off his blindfold with such force, he pulled out a few of his hairs.

He nearly gasped. Two people stood before him, one was a short boy, whose hair was so oddly colored it made him look like the grape, fruit snacks of which he smelled like. The second person took Hajime's breath away. He was taller than Hajime, but only by what looked like an inch. He had a very thin figure, and skin so pale he looked like a sheet of paper. He had a thin face, one that was as pale as the rest of his body. His eyes were a beautiful grey, a grey so simple but so entrancing at the same time. He had white-pink tipped hair, which to Hajime's dislike was being hidden by the hood of his long green jacket. But from the hair Hajime saw, it looked very well cared for, and soft. But the small smile that lay on the boy's face was entrancing. It was only then that Hajime realized how small he felt compared to this boy. But, he almost liked it in a way, in some weird way.

They had made eye contact. Hajime's olive eyes were locked in with the white-haired males grey ones. The two wished this contact lasted forever, so much ferocity and wonder in that one gaze. Hajime's cheeks were ablaze, but he couldn't care, he forever wished to be in that stare. But the small boy that stood next to the taller male, broke the gaze with a comment that made Hajime's cheeks go redder than ever.

"Look, Nagi! They both have hair boners!"


	4. An Awkward First Encounter

"Look, Nagi! They both have hair boners!"

"Kokichi!" Nagito cried in surprise, he slapped his hand over his brother's mouth. Making sure to not let more comments like that escape his childish brother's foul mouth. He then looked back up at the boy that stood before him. Who seemed more beautiful than life, and seemed to shine brighter than the sun. The other boy looked more like the moon, with his dark attire, and pale skin, he might have passed as a Reaper. But Nagito's eyes wanted to stay on the burnet's face, which was so effortlessly perfect, Nagito's face felt quite warm. "Ah, sorry about my brother, he likes to make big statements..."

"I-It's fine," The burnet said with a slight stutter, he cleared then his throat. His voice was clear and defined, it wavered slightly, but he was trying his best to sound confident. Nagito was instantly captivated by this boy's tone. "Um, should we introduce ourselves?"

"Yep, yep, yep!" Kokichi said he had freed himself from Nagito's grasp, "I'm Kokichi! The Ultimate Reaper-!"

"He's lying, I'm sorry it's a habit of his," Nagito cut in quickly.

"Oh, um, that's alright," The boy with the dark clothes said with a small smile, "I'm Shuichi...it's nice to meet you, Kokichi, I'm assuming you're younger?"

"Awww, are you only sayin' that because I'm shorter~?" Kokichi said mischievously as he greatly drew out the 'Er' sound, he started to take big steps towards the blue-haired boy, who had begun to glow crimson. "But your right...so it doesn't really matter~." Kokichi went quite close to Shuichi's face, he was trying to tease the poor boy the best he could.

"Hey! What are you doing?" The burnet snapped at Kokichi.

"Me? Oh...I'm just playing tag...and..." Kokichi then quickly tapped Shuichi's nose and then soared back into the air, "And you're it! Now come and get me!"

Kokichi soared into the other room, through the door that was already open. Black feathers slowly fell to the floor from the ceiling. Shuichi stared in wonder at the feathers as they rained down, he then reopened his wings and took flight into the next room. Nagito heard Kokichi squealed with excitement as Shuichi entered the room.

But then Nagito realized why Kokichi had started the game of tag. It was to leave him alone with this beautiful brunet. Nagito continued to stare at the burnet, who had his attention momentarily turned to the door. His figure was perfect, his skin was tan and he was muscular. His hair was spikey, and as Kokichi stated before, he did indeed have a hair boner. Whatever that was. But he was handsome, Nagito still thought that was an understatement, but he decided to base his looks on the word handsome. He almost jumped when the tanned boy spoke finally,

"Um, I'm Hajime," Hajime...such a beautiful name...Nagito, who had formalized himself with names and their meanings knew that Hajime meant 'Beginning' or to start new, or fresh, "And, what's your name?"

"N-Nagito, um, I'm Nagito," Nagito said as he extended his hand to shake Hajime's. When Hajime took Nagito's hand to shake it, the boy was so surprised by his grip that he barely moved. He also noticed how pale his skinny his hands looked compared to Hajime's. The two shook hands, for much longer than actually needed.

Throughout the entire 'handshake' Nagito continued to stare into Hajime's eyes. They were so captivating to him, they held so much emotion. Nervousness? Worry? Fear? And...embarrassment? 'Is it me?' Nagito thought in his self deprecating ways. After a while, they finally broke their 'Handshake'.

"I'm sorry about this, by the way," Hajime said bitterly. He started to rub the back of his neck with discomfort.

"Huh? What do you mean, Hajime?"

"Uh, you know, the fact that we have to get married and all that stuff, and now we're just being forced to awkwardly bond with one another...so I'm sorry about that," Hajime said as he swiftly turned away from Nagito, in an attempt to conceal the pink that was reforming on his cheeks.

"Well, um, it doesn't have to be awkward!" Nagito said with a cheery smile, that wavered for a moment for his head started to throb. He however quickly regained his composure. "We can still talk, right?"

Hajime turned around again to face Nagito, he then gave a small laugh. "You know for reaper, you really are quite optimistic."

Nagito felt his face explode with color.

"Haha! You can't catch me!" Kokichi had once again soared back into the main room, Shuichi was hot on the boy tail! Or wings more specifically. Shuichi who was ecstatic with laughter was stretching his hand out, in an attempt to tag Kokichi out. Which he did. Kokichi immediately froze at Shuichi's sudden contact, his cheeks flushed and his lips formed into a smile. "You got me! Nee Hee Hee!"

"Um," Shuichi then stopped, still in the air, clueless, "What now?"

"What? You don't know how to play tag? Geez! Well, I'll give you a three-second head start, you have to try not to get tagged by me now! Three...two...one~...Go!" Kokichi then launched forward to tap Shuichi out.

Shuichi, however, had avoided the chandelier on the ceiling. Kokichi found himself tangled in the crystal, unable to get out. The poor boy shook his wings desperately in an attempt to free himself, he however in the process, let his left-wing break the position that he had been holding it in an attempt to hide the ugly scars on his wing.

"Nagi! Can you please help me?" Kokichi called down, he was unaware that his secret had been exposed. Nagito knew this, and he knew that Hajime and Shuichi would question it. So when he took to the ceiling, he made his left wings scars perfectly noticeable as he flew. As Nagito was freeing his brother from the chandelier, he heard Shuichi whisper something that sounded like, 'Those scars,' but he smiled when he heard Hajime hissed back, 'Shh, don't say anything about it,'

After Kokichi was free, the two landed on the ground without making a noise. It was then that Kokichi realized that his scars were visible. Nagito felt him stiffen next to him, so as Kokichi began to rearrange his wings, Nagito stepped forward and made a suggestion, "Um, how about we just, talk? Me and Hajime, Kokichi, and Shuichi? Just without the flying?"

"Yeah, that would work," Hajime said awkwardly as he pushed Shuichi forward towards Kokichi, who had finished fixing up his wings.

"Alrighty!"Kokichi said happily, he had once again regained his composer, "Let's go Shuichi! Hey, hey, hey! C'mon!" Kokichi snatched up Shuichi's hand, who gave no resistance to the idea. The two ran into the other room, once again leaving the awkward Nagito alone with the awkward Hajime.

The two wordlessly, found themselves sitting across from one another, on one of the squishiest couches ever. The fluffiness of the couch was a mere distraction for Nagito, he had always been fond of comfortable things.

"What's your favorite food?" Hajime muttered, immediately slapping his hand to his face as he finished the sentence, "I'm sorry, that was so bad..."

"I love bagels," Nagito whispered gently, he then stood up and walked over to Hajime, very slowly. 'What am I doing? I'm gonna scare him, stop walking, what is going-?' Nagito then sat down next to Hajime and very gently lifted his hand from his face. There was a slight red mark on the burnets cheek, that one was from the slap, the rest of his face was pink. "You shouldn't hurt yourself over a simple question Hajime."

"R-Right," Hajime muttered as he placed his hands in his lap after clearing his throat for what seemed like the millionth time to Nagito who too had placed his hands in his lap.

"What's yours?" Nagito asked without looking at Hajime. For he knew that he was acting strange. But he couldn't help it in a way, it was like an odd tick for him. And when these ticks happened, things were not very appealing. He was obnoxious and flirty, but he could not stop himself, these ticks mainly began when he had not taken his pain meds in a while. Nagito often took them as warning signs. He wished greatly however that his warning signs were not so embarrassing and self-controlling.

"I like orange juice," Hajime said trying his best to sound confident.

"That's not a food Hajime," Nagito said with a small laugh, his head had begun to pound. 'Why is it starting now? I've been taking these meds for awhile! I know about these stupid ticks, so why are they getting so bad? Why now are the meds starting to fail? I need them! But I can't just pull out the bundle, but I can't leave to take them. I don't want Hajime to think somethings wrong. Not that he would care...but would he? He seems kind, he has a tough but weak guy aura, I think he's trying to act confident, but why? Can't he see how weak I am compared to him, why is trying to act all promotional and tough? And why is he so...handsome-' "Ack!"

Nagito clapped a hand over his mouth, he had let a small cry leave his mouth, his cry came from the sudden jolt of pain that shot through his pounding head like a bullet. Time seemed to freeze for the poor boy, he had been so lost in his thoughts about the burnet that sat next to him, that he forgot to keep his composure.

Hajime's head immediately turned to face Nagito. "Hey, are you okay? Is something wrong?"

"Oh, haha, no, it's fine, I-I'm good! I'm fine, I'm great! ...How are you?"

Hajime's eyebrows raised several inches his forehead, "Not so great, considering that I'm being lied to."

'Fuck...' Nagito thought, he felt his stomach form into a knot. "I'm not lying, w-why would I lie to you Hajime?"

"Don't play dumb, I just heard you cry out like something hurt you, so are you gonna tell me what's wrong? Or are you gonna lie?"

'...Damn, he's smart...what the hell do I say? Think...' Nagito then found himself moving closer to Hajime, involuntarily of course, but he could not stop. Hajime himself began to back up as Nagito moved closer to him. The burnet soon found himself pushed up against the armrest of the sofa. Nagito towered over Hajime, his arms on either side of the boy's head, he was staring down at him, wonder in his eyes. 'What am I doing?' Nagito screamed inside his head, 'I'm gonna scare him! Stop! Let me off him!' "Do you believe in hope Hajime?"

"Wh-What?" Hajime stuttered, "What the h-hell do you m-mean Nagito? W-Wh-Why are you on top of me?"

"You have really pretty eyes..." Nagito's words slipped out of his mouth like rain that didn't want to fall. He was almost stuck, unable to say what he wanted. Nagito lifted his left hand and began to softly stroke Hajime's hair, which was really soft..."...Actually, your eyes are really quite beautiful..."

"H-Huh?" Hajime whispered, going a new shade of pink that redefined the dictionary definition of blushing. Hajime blinked a few times and then squeezed his eyes shut, entered a deep thought process, and then opened his eyes again, this time, his gaze was in a glare, "Is this really funny to you Junko?"

"Hm?" Nagito whispered he had begun to feel like he was back in his own body, he however still could not remove himself from Hajime, he tried to bend his arms, but they remained in their position. At least he wasn't trying to flirt anymore, but at that moment he was in a full state of panic, 'Get off him! He thinks I'm being controlled by that witch! Get off! Get off him!'

"I bet it's very amusing for someone like you! Making him do all sorts of fucked of things to me! Well, t's not gonna fucking work!" Hajime then grabbed hold of Nagito's thin shoulders and pushed. When Nagito made contact with the ground, his head slammed against the small coffee table. The pain in his head seemed to multiply by 10 times, Nagito sank his teeth into his lips, he curled up on the rug like a wounded animal. Clutching his head and chewing in his lip, begging his body not to let out a scream. Hajime stood over him, clearly unaware of what he was actually doing to Nagito, "Stay away from me you witch, and maybe keep out of your puppet when I'm forced to see him,"

Hajime stepped over Nagito and walked into the next room. Nagito through the thumping sound in his head heard his little brother yell something like, 'What the heck? Go?' and then he slightly made out, 'Yes! Hajime, and Shuichi!' and he heard a sliced, 'Wait! I want to stay with Kokichi-' and then silence. Then all he could hear was, thump, thump, thump. 'Enough already...please...that's enough...'

"Nagi! Nagi! Nagito!" Kokichi cried, shaking his brother's shoulds with quite a bit of force.

"G-Gentle, please Kokichi," Nagito whispered as he sat up from the floor.

"Did that pinecone piece of shit hurt you?" Kokichi yelled as he balled up his fist in front of his face as if he could punch the now gone Hajime. "I'll hurt him back! I fly right up to heaven and I'll beat the sense back into his spiky hair! Like, damn how is his hair even that spikey?"

"It's really soft..." Nagito whispered. This caught Kokichi off guard quite a bit, the small boy jumped up at that, which allowed Nagito to stand up, he was a bit wobbly, because he felt like he had been beaten with a baseball bat. "His hair, it really is quite soft..."

"Wait wait, he let you touch his hair, and then he fought you?"

"What? No...I kinda...pinned him down...and I touched his hair a little bit..."

"Wait, you pinned your future husband down, touched his hair...and then he fought you?"

"Yes," Nagito said as he slapped his hand against his head, giving him a fresh jolt and spasm of pain. "Ow..."

"Did, you act weird?"

"Yes."

"Oh, did one of those ticks happen again? You know the ones that you refuse to talk to me about...?" Kokichi said in a guilt-tripping tone. It was one of the many things that Nagito had refused to tell Kokichi about.

"Please spare me the lecture, for now, my little brother," Nagito said in a very overly dramatic voice. Nagito walked past his brother and into the next room, it was about the same as the previous room. It had some furniture and all that useless stuff, but it also had a large pile of white feathers resting in front of one sofa. "How did you make out with Shuichi?"

Kokichi knew Nagito was avoiding the previous topic, but he too wanted to talk about Shuichi, considering that he had never laughed harder in his life with him. "I-I really liked him, he was really sweet, and shy. I think...he liked me,"

"I think so too..." Nagito whispered as he bent down and picked up a white feather from the ground. It was quite light and for more beautiful than any feather that Nagito could produce, and it was Hajime's. For it had the same scent as him, and it seemed like something he could produce. "He hates me,"

"No, I don't think so...I think he hates Junko, not you..." Kokichi said in a semi reassuring tone, which made him seem even more unsure.

"So he's basically like every Reaper ever, but then again, who would want to hang around with one of her creations? Especially scum like me,"

Kokichi was silent. He had no rebuttal. Nagito had a way with words when he was making a point, which was bad when one was trying to make him feel better. "Should we go?"

"Yeah..." Nagito murmured as he clutched his head, he was about to stand and leave, when he realized that he still had Hajime's feather clutched in his hand. For a moment, he almost didn't want to let go, he wanted to hold on, that feather seemed like a beacon to him. It seemed to radiate hope...whatever that meant to Hajime. To Nagito, hope was something along the lines of absolute power or a force that one could not see.

"Kokichi!" A flash of light streaked through Nagito's aviation, and when he blinked his brother was gone, leaving only a pile of black feathers behind. Nagito however, did not leave. He stood very still, looking carefully at the feather that still lay in his palm. He remained as silent as a stone as he continued to stare at it. He could really explain why it was if the feather offered him some sort f interest. Nagito then let go of the feather and watched it fall silently until it gently landed on top of the other feathers.

"...Will he be sad? When I have to go?.... I don't know...maybe that is for the better, ignorance is bliss... enjoy your ignorance, my beautiful Hajime," Nagito then spread his wings out, looked to the ceiling, and cried out, "Nagito!"

And then he was gone.

...

"That was horrible," Kyoko sneered as she pushed out of her hair and stormed to the other side of the room.

Makoto rubbed his temples in great embarrassment and exhaustion. Mukuro had her hand over her mouth in a contemplative way, ''Well...Shuichi and Kokichi certainly had...some...success," She said, tentatively, ''Nagito and Hajime however, that was..."

"That was something that ended in Nagito getting thrown to the ground after he climbed on top of Hajime," Kyoko groaned as she pressed her gloved hand to her face, "Hajime, by the looks of it, came to the completely wrong conclusion,"

"Is it just his personality?" Makoto asked Mukuro, The King of Heaven had only seen Nagito once, and that was when he was just created.

Mukuro turned to face the wall, "Something like that..." She whispered gently, a hidden pain in her voice that nobody seemed to detect, except for Kyoko who took note of this sudden tone change.

"Well from the look of Hajime's pants I don't think he really minded being in that position! Keyheeha~!" Toko, or more, not so much Toko roared with laughter, clutching her stomach and spinning her defense scissors in her hand. "He had a big one too! And just from being topped-"

"Who told you to speak?" Byakuya roared at Toko, as he pressed a small taser against her forehead to change back into her normal self.

"Toko, please refrain from talking about that stuff, that's something that we should keep out of the situation," Peko said calmly a confused Toko as Fuyuhiko yanked Byakuya away from ripping his partners head off. They were not dating, Toko herself had found someone far less...cruel than Byakuya. The glasses-wearing blonde had always insisted that romance was not real and that he had no time for any of that nonsense.

Makoto heaved a sigh, "Well, I have a suggestion,"

"Please share, I'll tell Junko as soon as I get back," Mukuro said simply as she straightened her self in her chair, which sat in front of the monitor which was still displaying the island's rooms for everyone to observe, to make sure nothing too bad happened.

"I suggest that they are assigned to the same souls, the four should travel together collecting their daily souls, and they should always be together,"

Silence. Then Kyoko spoke up, "So you want them to travel like a group of soul collectors?"

"Yes," Makoto said as if this was the most obvious thing in the world, "Hajime was always quite committed to trying to find out Nagito's identity before they met, and their only interactions should not be confined to just a tiny room on a tiny island."

More silence followed the King's statement, then everyone nodded their heads. "Alright I'll talk to Rantaro, he'll be able to re-arrange their soul collection charts," Mukuro said firmly as she stood up and spread her wings.

Everyone filed out. Except for Kyoko, who had halted Mukuro for a question, "Is there something wrong with Nagito?" She snapped at Mukuro before she tried to enter the vortex.

"No...nothing that concerns you, is that all Queen Kyoko?" Mukuro said, edge on her voice, this was a warning to tell Kyoko to pry. Kyoko however, glared back a Mukuro's response, but still noted her statement, and then asked another question.

"Care to explain the scars on their wings?"

"That is also none of your business, don't pry Kyoko, you will only find a nasty trail," Mukuro sneered back at the purple-haired Queen, there was a hint of sadness in the last part of her sentence. Kyoko also noted this as Mukuro took into the vortex.

"A nasty trail, huh?" Kyoko whispered as she spread her beautiful wings, "Well, I'll be the one to determine that."


	5. "A Dark Omen Sits On His Fragile Shoulders"

Hajime was sitting on the floor of his bathroom, rubbing his temples and resisting the urge to scream. He had been sitting there since he had gotten back from the meeting that he wished he could delete from his memories. Hajime could not forget how childish Kokichi was, or how happy Shuichi was. But above all else, he could never forget Nagito.

'Nagito...' Hajime thought to himself. Felt his face grow very red at the thought of the white-haired male. He couldn't forget how he seemed so polite and sweet until he found himself lying below the male, being called beautiful and having his hair stroked. Hajime could still feel his hands rubbing his scalp. His face went blistering hot at the thought of that moment the two shared. Nagito was quite...dominant. Never in his life had Hajime laid beneath someone, and never had he been called beautiful. And never had he gotten hard just from some compliments and a bit of hair stroking. As if he had ever gotten hard before in his life... 'That smug bastard,' Hajime thought, trying too sound mad as if anger and being overly confident and blaming Nagito would fix his life, 'Bet he's laughing with the witch right now...meanwhile I'm stuck on my floor with a semi-boner and a mess of the first encounter,' 

Even in Hajime's thoughts, he tried to sound smart to himself. 

However, something inside of him was betraying these, 'Let's blame it on Nagito's thoughts. That something seemed to be saying, 'But, maybe he's being controlled against his will, maybe he really isn't like that...' Hajime then squeezed his eyes shut, even more, it was subjected humiliation to him, he hated being below people. He firmly stood by the thought of, if one tries to make you feel small, make them feel small. Whether it be words or physical actions, Hajime never wanted to be smaller than anyone. Never. That's why he pushed Nagito off him, so then why did he feel remorse? And the urge to apologize? And why was his heart telling him that the Nagito he had seen, was not the real Nagito?

There was a sharp knock on the bathroom door, which came so suddenly Hajime that he jumped several inches and his wings unfolded, and he also let out a small yelp.

"Sorry did I startle you?" Byakuya snapped from the other side of the door.

"Um, yes? I didn't even hear you knock on my bedroom door-!" Hajime argued, he was about to stand up and face Byakuya when he remembered his unfortunate situation concerning his private region, so he sank back down to the floor.

"Sorry not sorry," Byakuya, Hajime could almost hear him roll his eyes, through the door, "Hajime when you finally decide to stop acting like a child hiding in the bathroom, Izuru wants a word with you, he says he will be waiting at the entrance of the garden for you,"

Hajime froze at the mention of the name Izuru. Izuru was known as the judger of souls, and the all-knowing force. Just before a person was about to die, Izuru would enter their minds, and replay their entire life, he would then judge them to see if they would be placed in heaven or hell. Many believed he was the reason behind the phrase, 'My Life Just Flashed Before My Eyes'. In older days, he would also judge people who would be sent to purgatory, he himself used to live there. Until of course, it's destruction, he then chose to reside in heaven, for in his words, the scenery was kinder than hell. The Angels tried to avoid him, he had a sort of scary aura. 

Hajime began to call out to Byakuya asking for him to tell Izuru that he had to talk to him later. However, Byakuya had already returned to his office to read. 'Out of all his damn people to mentor me, Makoto gives me the most snotty person alive... or dead,' Hajime thought angrily to himself. He then glanced back down at his pants. 'There's no way in hell...' Hajime thought in a very stubborn way, he had already cast aside one of two possibilities, so the only one left to do was, '...Wait...'

And wait he did. 

... 

Nagito after returning to hell, quickly ran, or flew to Mikans. His head was about to split open, and his body begged for rest. But he needed to tell Mikan about the ticks, and how they needed to be suppressed. 'Or I'll find a way to put a bullet in my brain before the gala,' Nagito thought hypothetically. Or course a bullet would work against an unkillable being, of fucking course. 

Nagito landed on the balcony of the medical tower, stumbling over himself and dizzy. He went down to the seventh floor where Mikan's office was, he made sure to knock, due to his polite nature, and he did not wish to scare Mikan out of her skin. "C-Come in, p-please," Nagito entered the room, it was mainly Mikan's office, but there was also a bed, which would hold patience who needed constant supervision. Thankfully that bed had never held a single soul. Nagito crossed the room to Mikan who had set her pen down with an open mouth, "Oh m-my goodness! N-Na-Nagito! Your head! You look h-ho-horrific!" 

Mikan hastily pulled a chair up for the young Reaper, she then proceeded to examine a large bump on Nagito's head, which he did not know he even had. "Can y-you tell me why yo-your injured like this?"

"I was pushed and I hit a coffee table," Nagito said simply.

"Eeek! That must have a-affected your he-head!"

"Yeah it did, listen Mikan, the medication you've been giving me is not working," Nagito said as Mikan began to rub a cream on the bump, which would suppress it as well as relieve some of the pain. 

"N-Not working?"

"Yes, the ticks, they got really bad today, I mean, I climbed on top of Hajime!"

"P-Please don't be angry at me! I-I'm so sorry! P-Please! I'm not completely sure why! Th-This medication should b-be working, i-it's been d-doing just fine f-for a-awhile!" Mikan stuttered and spoke so quickly it was almost had to make out what she was saying. "Are you in p-pain now?"

"Yes..." Nagito whispered as he pressed his fingers to his temples as another jolt of pain ran through his body. 

"T-Take another pill," Mikan ordered as she ran around to her desk, stumbling quite a bit. Nagito dry swallowed one of the small white tablets, which tasted faintly of his hatred of himself. Mikan herself was flipping through Nagito's file, which practically weighed a pound or two. "Ah! Nagito, I-I've figured it out! Y-Your spasm today was only for today it was put to in place when..."

But Nagito was not listening his mind had traveled to another world. He had already remembered why he had the spasm, he had just forced the thought of it out of his head. Or he had forgotten it would happen, or maybe it was a reason that he did not want to speak off. Never the less, he did not want to hear it, so he blocked out Mikan's words. 

"Nagito? A-Are you listening?" Mikan asked as she placed a hand on Nagito's shoulder in a worrying sense, he gently surged her off and stood up, "W-Wait! Y-You need to rest!"

"I need to apologize to Hajime," Nagito said as he began to make his way back to the stairway. He unfolded his wings, black feathers began to fall to the floor. 

He then felt a shaking and sweaty hand close around his wrist. "I-I am y-your doctor N-Nagito, you don't k-know t-the way to heaven, and y-you need to sleep! So I am going to take you back to your tower and you are going to rest even if I have to chain you to the bed!" Mikan shouted the last part, she didn't stutter and she did not hesitate. 

Nagito let his wings tuck in again. And he gave Mikan a simple nod, she then spread her own wings and led him to the balcony. The two silently flew back to Kokichi and Nagito's tower and Mikan lay her patient on his bed and pressed two sleeping pills in his hand, and ordered him to take them. 

"Thank you, Mikan," Nagito whispered as she began to re-examine the bump on his head, to make sure the cream was doing its job. 

"Nagito, I-I worry about you," Nagito turned away from her as she said that, he hated it when he got these 'I'm Worried About You' speeches. "Y-Your very kind and I-I don't th-think that you deserved this...curse. However, I-I want to know what your p-plan is for yo-your future husband...d-do you ha-have one?"

Nagito shook his head. His grip tightened around the blankets that surrounded him, he yerned that he would just fall asleep. 

Mikan bit her cheek, "N-Nagito, I-I a-agreed t-to keep it from K-Ko-Kokichi, b-but, this is not something that should be p-put off any longer, especially not from Hajime..."

Nagito then muttered, "I'll tell him when I need to..." It was barely audible for Mikan but she knew that he would put it off. 

"N-Nagito, sometimes i-ignorance is a t-terrible th-thing," Mikan whispered, Nagito didn't have a responsibility too that, how could he? Mikan then gently patted Nagito's hair, "You k-know where to find me..."

Nagito didn't say a word as Mikan left. He lay on his bed in perfect silence. Not fidgeting or stirring in the slightest, he just lay there. His mind was spinning, it did not hurt as much anymore due to the pain killers, but thoughts of the burnet had taken over his brain. 'How could I ever tell him?' Nagito thought, that single thought made his eyes sting and his breath hitch, '...But would he care? Of course not...or maybe he would? Would he? Would he be able to carry the thought that I'm going to... ... ... no. Who could ever carry that? Never Kokichi... and if not him... who could, who would? ... Why do I even think like this? I've just met you... so why have you already...become my everything?'

...

"Izuru?" Hajime said in his most confident voice that he could muster at the moment, "You wanted to see me?"

Izuru turned to face Hajime, his knee-length hair swished behind him as he turned to face the now sweating brunet. His blood-red eyes pierced Hajime's with a cold glare. Hajime gulped, he had received a heavy reminder of why people avoided Izuru.

"There's no need to be so uptight, I only wanted a word," Izuru sneered at Hajime, noticing his discomfort. He then began to walk away from his previous spot, his long hair swishing behind him like a cloak. 

"Um, yes of course," Hajime said, quickly following suit to the Judger. They walked into Heaven's gardens, flowers covered the place, but they were mostly blue and sliver, it was winter in the time of the mortal world, so the flowers would change to match the world below. Silver and blue roses covered most of the flower beds, while the willow trees long flowy branches had been covered in ice that was cold to the touch. Snow fell around them, but only on the flower beds and the area's of tree's, never on the path, for the path was perfectly normal in temperature, however, if one was to place their hand on the outside of the path, one would feel a chill of winter air. 

"The gala will be on the first I presume?" Izuru said calmly as he stared calmly at the beautiful scenery. Hajime himself stiffened at the thought, the gala was to be held on January first, which was also Hajime's birthday, he would be turning 19. 'What a shitty date...' Izuru turned his head to look at Hajime as he thought that, "I don't think it will be that bad Hajime, it's only a month from now, you will have gotten to know Nagito by then,"

"Please don't read my thoughts Izuru," Hajime mumbled.

"Well, anyway, I do hate wasting time, so I'm just going to tell you why I called you, it's about The Young Reaper,"

"Huh? Kokichi?" Hajime questioned dumbfoundedly.

Izuru heaved a heavy sigh. "The white male that you are beginning to obsess over."

Hajime's face lowered at that sentence. More thoughts rushed into his brain at the thought of Nagito, who he was so trying to push out off his head. "What about him?"

"I can tell that something is wrong with him," Izuru said as he extended his hand outside the paths protective invisible barrier to feel the snowfall on his hand. 

"Yeah no kidding, somethings definitely wrong with you if you have a witch controlling you!" Hajime sneered, he had at the moment chosen to abandon his thoughts of giving some sympathy to Nagito. 

"He's not being controlled," Izuru said simply as he pulled his hand back onto the path, and watched the snowmelt in an instant. "You should know that Hajime, no being can be controlled, especially not Reapers,"

"W-Well, he's one of The Witches-"

"Do not speak ill of her name," Izuru said in a warning tone, "It is a wise sounding choice, but no, Junko, or in fact, anyone, can't control anyone. The only type of controlling there is in this world is manipulation, and since I don't like spoilers I'm not going to tell you why manipulation would not work on your white-haired friend,"

"He is not my friend," Hajime hissed, his ears grew quite red at that.

"But...that is not to say something hasn't happened to your friend," Izuru whispered as he began to resume his walk. 

"Izuru he is not my..." 'Something happened to him? What does he mean-' Hajime's thoughts were however interrupted by Izuru, still very calmly saying;

"He has been invaded by something, an omen," Izuru said contemplatively, he however still walked as though nothing in the world mattered. 

"A-Are you sure?" Hajime asked, not caring anymore if he stuttered, 'What is it? Is it hurting him?'

"I haven't been wrong once, and there are several things I wish I was wrong on...but I looked over the boy's mind for a moment or two before you two began your little chat. And I almost had to exit imminently, it was suffocating, and clouded in his head. It was almost as if I was being crushed, his thoughts were so dark, he was...well, quite the case," Izuru said as he continued to stroll onward, Hajime did, however, see him shudder as he described what it was like inside Nagito's head.

Hajime's head swirled. 'But...why? Why would he be like that? An omen?' Omens were mysterious forces, many described as either dark or light. And they were almost always associated with curses, and they were rarely such a thing as a light Omen. 'But a curse? No...it makes absolutely no sense...someone cursing Nagito?' These questions were like bee stings to Hajime, so many of them...and so painfully to pick out. 'No...its no curse...it's just him-'

"Drop it Hajime," Izuru snorted, "Nagito is clearly not like that, do you think he normally just climbs on top of people? Your smarter than that Hajime, I think the reason you can't stop blaming Nagito for what happened is that you expand your brain farther than your ass," 

"S-So what if that is the case? And sure! Let's say Nagito does have Omen living inside of him! And what am I supposed to do? Why did you even call me out Izuru? Just to give me a not so easy to understand spoiler-free warning? Or is it the fact that you just love to toy with me?" Hajime spat, his fists were clenched and his face was in such a deep glare that it hurt. 

Izuru was silent for a minute, but he then turned to face Hajime, his face too was in a deep glare, but was not a glare, it was a warning sort of glare. "Calm down Hajime, souls are reuniting here," He then pointed a finger to a nearby willow. 

Hajime turned his head to where Izuru was pointing. His expression softened at the scene. Two souls were rushing towards one another, their arms were outstretched and tears flying out from their eyes. One boy was tall and skinny, with blond hair and green eyes, Hajime knew him instantly, he once led a mafia, and he was subjected to child pornography as a child. The other boy was round-faced, he had kind eyes that could sing a baby to sleep. The two greater each other with a kiss. Hajime felt himself smile at that. The two had been separated before they could meet again, it was such a tragedy. But at that moment, tragedy seemed like a thing of the past.

"That boy Ash, he had a Dark Omen clouding him his entire life," Izuru said, "Until that boy, Eiji helped remove it...but then of course...death came for him, but he was smiling, he was smiling. Hajime, be kind to Nagito. A dark omen sits on his fragile shoulders, I think you might need to lend him one. But not just a shoulder, but a hand too..."

...

Hajime woke up the next day with an empty head. He had basically dropped dead on his bed when he got back from his chat with Izuru. So that morning when Byakuya came to wake him up, he was already fully dressed and ready for work.

"Well I'll be damned," Byakuya said with a chuckle, "Hajime is actually ready to do something with his life,"

Hajime rolled his eyes and started to make his way to Shuichi's door before he was stopped by his mentor. "Hold it, here are your new timesheets,"

"Huh? Why was the format changed? I and Shuichi have had the same timesheets for a while now!"

"Just go with it," Byakuya sneered as he pushed up his glasses and retreated into his study. Hajime examined his timesheet, it was completely different than his last one. He was to collect souls in completely different regions than usual and at different times than usual. He would be out of work two hours later than normal! But there was one thing that particularly stood out to him... note at the bottom that said he was to meet with his team members at the first collection and then stay with them from now on. 'Team? Huh, that's odd...'

"Moring Hajime..." Shuichi groaned sleepily as he walked up to his brother adjusting his hat here and there.

"I hope you got enough sleep, take a look at this, we're working late tonight." Shuichi's eyes went big when he looked at his new timesheet, he then started to mumble under his breath about how stupid that was. 

The two ran into the kitchen to grab a few slices of toast, Hajime also helped himself to a glass of orange juice. The two ate as they ran back to their tower, they chatted a bit about how unfair life was and how much they hated mornings. Shuichi himself was draining an iced coffee and talking quite a bit about the team thing. "A team? I m-mean, we've never been on a soul collection team before..."

Hajime sipped his orange juice as he stepped onto the balcony. "Well, I guess we'll find out who we're gonna be with... let's see...we're hitting Tokyo first...geez... a young woman will be hit by a car today while crossing the road."

"Wow," Shuichi said sadly. "Well, let's get going, we don't want to embarrass ourselves in front of our new team!"

Hajime and Shuichi set down their glasses and spread their wings wide. They then began to soar up into heaven's blue sky, before screaming 'Open' in a sudden flash, they were flying through a glittering tube, which was warm and beautiful as always. They then were emptied into the city of Tokyo, which was busy with life. The two soared over the tallest buildings, Hajime briefly studied his reflection as he passed the glass windows of business towers. They traveled in the sky, searching for the small town in which the two were to collect the soul. The brothers then landed on the sidewalk of a simple town and watched the poor women cross the street. Hajime himself could not bear to see what was about to happen, it was too cruel to him, she was going to have a good future too. So he stared at the sidewalk across from them, which was empty. But as Hajime saw the car come speaking past, hitting the poor women, he saw two others.

A white-haired boy, who was earnestly covering the eyes of a small purple-haired boy. Their wings were as black as midnight, and their expressions shared shock and confusion. When the car was finally clear from the view. The two pairs stared at one another, in awe. But then it clicked. 

"You gotta be fucking kidding me," Hajime yelled.


	6. A... Team?

"Shumai!!" Kokichi shrieked as he flew across the street at a miraculous speed, tackling the poor Shuichi to the ground in a tight bear hug. Shuichi let out a gasp when his back hit the ground, but his face quickly transformed into a warped smile.

"H-Hi Kokichi...I-I can't br-breathe!"

"Awww, you so cute!" Kokichi giggled as he gave his Shumai a final squeeze before letting him stand up and breathe. "Why'd you have to leave?"

"Um, we had to do some stuff-"

"Why are you wearing that emo hat? Your hair is nicer when it's not being covered!" Kokichi chirped, he began to jump up and down like a child high off of sugar. 

While Shuichi and Kokichi's talk was going quite well, Nagito and Hajime's was nothing short of stale rat shit. Nagito awkwardly observed Hajime, who had his back to Nagito, collect the soul of the young women, he could tell Hajime was raking his head for something to say to the white-haired boy. The tension was high in the air. When Hajime finally straightened himself up, he cleared his throat in a semi-professional manner. "Hi-"

"I'm sorry!" Nagito cried out as quickly as he could, he then bowed his head low as a symbol of apology. He squeezed his eyes shut, waiting for a rebuttal, 'I don't deserve to be forgiven...' He thought in his usual self-shaming tone. 

"H-Hey! Don't do that! You don't need to bow, I should be the one bowing! I pushed you off, and your head!" Hajime cried as he ran forward to Nagito. 

"You noticed?" Nagito whispered as Hajime forced him to raise his head. Hajime then began to look deeply at the bump, worry, and remorse in his eyes. 

"Of course, that's a big bump," Hajimes fingers then gently brushed his fingers over the bump, trying to be gentle, "Does it hurt?"

"A bit..." Nagito whispered dumfounded by this action. In truth, Hajime's action had actually caused him quite the jolt of pain, but he could feel pain later, this was something he did not want to miss. Hajime's fingers were so soft and gentle, did he care about Nagito's injury that much? 

Hajime then removed his hand from Nagito's face and then bowed down himself. Nagito nearly stumbled back at this action, but before he could tell Hajime to stop, Hajime spoke, "Nagito, I shouldn't have pushed you and said those awful things to you, I'm really sorry."

"No! Please don't apologize, you had every right to deal with me like that!" Nagito said, once again dipping his head into a bow. 

"No! Please don't bow down to me! I hurt you! You complimented me! Nobody should receive a bump on their head for a compliment!" Hajime cried, waving his hands frantically. 

"But I climbed on top of you! That's not fair either-"

"Nagito stop! Please just accept the apology! Please..." Hajime added a second please at the end, probably to enhance his sincerity. 

Nagito gulped, for him, he did not deserve this apology. 'I would rather be pushed down again than see Hajime acting like this...but, if he wants me to acept...how could I ever refuse?' He made up his mind quickly before rising from his bow and saying, "I-I accept your apology...Hajime,"

"Thank you...I accept your apology too, not that you need to give one anyway," Hajime said with an awkward laugh at the end. Nagito, however, could sense that there was something that Hajime wanted to say. 

"D-Do you want to say anything?" Nagito asked hesitantly. Hajime's expression turned from awkward to shock.

"No, nothing!" Hajime said curtly. He then straightened his shirt and swiftly walked past Nagito, but as he passed Nagito could feel his eyes resting on his wings scars. But before he completely passed the white-haired boy he took a minute to look at Nagito's hand. "Hey...where'd you get that?"

Hajime gestured to a black ring that fit perfectly on Nagito's ring finger. There was nothing special at all about it, in fact, it looked somewhat like the rings that one could get out of a vending machine. But it was far more than that to Nagito. "I honestly don't know," Nagito said with a chuckle, "I just realized one day that I had it on, I think I was three or something, I don't know how I got it...I just accepted it and have just been wearing it," 

Hajime stared harder at the ring, but then gave an odd sort of shrug, and continued towards Shuichi and Kokichi. Who was at the moment sitting on the pavement playing chopsticks together, and Kokichi was surprisingly losing quite painfully? "What the heck! How is a leader like me losing to you!"

"I-I don't know, maybe luck?"

"No-No! There's no such thing as luck!" Kokichi said hotheadedly, as he once again lost to Shuichi. 

"Alright, come on Shuichi we have work to do! Say goodbye to Kokichi-!"

"Hey, hair boner!" Kokichi snapped, "I and Shumai are playing! And we have to be in America in an hour or two for our next collection! So shut your big mouth and go make out with Nagi because we are a team and we have to collect souls together, right~?"

"Why you little purple rat-" Hajime almost got the chance to lunge at Kokichi, before Nagito wrapped his arms around the brunet's waist, stoping the boy from attacking his brother. Hajime continued to struggle against his captor's grasp until he realized it was not Shuichi who was holding him back. Hajime instantly began to fight harder against Nagito's grasp. "L-Let me go Nagito!"

"Are you going to leave my brother alone?" Nagito said with a laugh, he found it incredibly funny that Hajime was this angry, and how Kokichi and Shuichi were already on the other side of the street and were silently giggling to one another. 'Thank god they're getting along...' Nagito thought as he continued to hold Hajime back, 'Wish that could be us...No stop acting like that. Wishing is not getting you anywhere, let him go, at this rate, he's going to kill my ass.' Nagito then quickly set Hajime free. Hajime's face was quite red, and he seemed troubled by something. "S-Sorry about that, I thought you here gonna kick Kokichi to another continent!"

"Probably couldn't lay finger on him because of Shuichi..." Hajime said hotly as he turned away from Nagito, with ears that were still very red. "It's good they're getting along..." 

"Y-Yeah," Nagito said with an optimistic tone, he then remembered why the four were together in the first place, "Um, should we discuss our plans?"

"Huh?"

"I mean, should we like, figure out a strategy for collecting souls?" Nagito said as he nervously began to play with the ring on his finger. This earned him an eyebrow raise from Hajime. Nagito could tell that he was suspicious of the ring, but for reasons, he did not know himself.

"Are you sure you can't remember how you got that ring?" Hajime asked Nagito shook his head vigorously. "Alright, um, forget I asked. So, me and Shuichi usually just go from collection point to collection point, and just work until we've collected all our souls-"

"Where do you keep the souls?" Nagito asked curiously, he then mentally cursed himself for interrupting a superior. But Hajime did not seem to mind the question. He actually looked quite happy that Nagito had even asked. 

"In my Halo," Hajime said as he closed his eyes, and allowed his halo to appear over his spikey hair. It was a beautiful golden color, and it seemed to glow in Hajime's tan hand. Nagito's eyes went quite wide at the sight of the beautiful crown, it seemed to radiate power and beauty to him. "We store the souls in it," Hajime looked to see Nagito staring at the halo, his eyes beautiful with wonder..."Do you want to hold it?"

"Huh?" Nagito gasped stumbling at the sudden question. Never in his life..."No! No! Hajime, trash like me should never be able to touch something like that-!"

"Nagito! Your not trash! You couldn't be farther than trash!"

"Your too kind Hajime..." Nagito whispered, his face was growing hot, and he felt so moved by Hajime's remark. Sure, Kokichi aid the same thing all the time, but he was his brother. And Hajime was...Hajime. 

"I just offered because you looked really interested in it..." Hajime said with a shy tone, "So do you want to hold it?"

Nagito gave a shaky nod. Hajime smiled gently and then took on of Nagito's hands and carefully placed his halo in it. Nagito placed another hand under his right one, to ensure that he would not drop it. It felt like cold metal against Nagito's skin, but it seemed so warm to him. It seemed to be an object that gave out such a happy feel. While Nagito's scythe made him look like a bloodthirsty murderer. "It's pretty..."

Hajime blushed and then carefully removed the halo from Nagito's palm and placed it above his head. Nagito took a thrid mental note of how gentle and soft Hajime's hands were. "So, um, what the plan?"

"Well me and Kokichi normally just collect what we're assigned to, and since we don't have anything to collect until America, I guess we can just hang out here with you guys? I mean, I think that what we're supposed to be doing anyway..." Nagito said as he tried to pull his hood over his face more, in an attempt to hide his reddened face. 

"Yeah, that should work...um, I'm just gonna be over there..."

"I'll just be reading..." Nagito whispered as he began to walk over to a small bench, which looked like it could infect one with many diseases. When Nagito sat down on it, he sighed. Why was he being so awkward? Shouldn't he be making an effort to be with Hajime? But did Hajime want to talk to him? 'Probably not...' Nagito said to himself as he pulled his book from his jacket pocket. He had actually gotten pretty invested in it. He was about halfway through. And he despised Oliver, he had gotten very bad vibes from him. He was turning a page when he heard approaching footsteps, he looked up to see familiar burnet. Hajime looked embarrassed and he was scratching the back of his head in discomfort. 

"D-Do you mind if I sit here?"

"No! Not at all!" Nagito said with a smile. Did Hajime actually want to talk to him? Hajime sat down at the very end of the bench, his hands in his lap. The two remained silent for a minute or two, Nagito glanced over at Hajime once or twice. Studying his beautiful and clean features, he truly was a sight for soar eyes. 

On the third glance, however, Hajime glanced too. The two caught each other's eyes, and the world seemed to hold its breath... 'Shit...' Nagito thought, he felt his stomach twist into a tight knot, 'What do I do? What do I do? Should I break eye contact! No...then I'll just look dumb...no no no no! Fuck me...'

"N-Nagito?"

"Ah! Um, yes?" Nagito asked quickly, he, however, did not break eye contact for a second. 

"NAGI!" Kokichi screamed out as he jumped into his brother's lap. Nagito let out a mini scream, due to the sudden startle. Shuichi covered his face with his palm to try and conceal his laughter. "Come on Nagi! You too Hair Boner! We have to head over to America!"

"Huh?" Hajime said in a confused tone, "We have like, an hour or two!"

"Time flies when there's sexual tension!" Kokichi remarked with a giggle, he then jumped off his brother's lap and landed next to Shuichi, who he had appeared to have grown extremely close too. The two then opened their wings and waved goodbye, quickly taking off into the vortex side by side. When all that remained of their presence was two piles of black and white feathers, Hajime once again cleared his throat. 

"Should we head out?"

"Yeah, I'll go first, wait...no we can go together..." Hajime said calmly once again going pink. 

"Oooh, does Hajime really want to go with me?" Nagito tried in a semi-teasing tone. But it ended up sounding like a failed flirting attempt...but it had some success. For Hajime's cheeks went one shade darker and his lips formed into a small smile. Nagito spread his wings and began to stretch. He didn't actually have to stretch, it was more of him just showing off his wings to Hajime. Hajime followed suit and did the same. Both boys bit their lip, 'Why are we doing this again?' Nagito thought, suddenly confused by his attempt of showing off. "Um, should we go?"

"Yeah," Hajime walked up beside Nagito, and he actually was quite close to him. Nagito could feel his white shirt brushing up against his jacket slightly. And Nagito went quite red at Hajimes scent, which was some sort of mixture of plain soap and orange juice. It was an odd combination, but Nagito was fond of it. Nagito also nearly had a heart attack when Hajime's wing bumped his. 

Reapers and Angle's wings were quite sensitive. A strike to the wings could be very painful, it was a weak area. And a fragile one too. If a Reapers or Angel's wings were to break or form in an odd way, they would be almost impossible to fix. Those who had broken bones in their wings or torn mussels often could never fly again. Wings would begin to form at age seven, they would take about of month to grow in, and then one would have to start training. Wing care was something that everyone needed to learn. Basic things like tucking in the wings, and treating the feathers, flying always came last. 

"Ah! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to hit yours!" Hajime cried as he turned to face Nagito's wing, taking it carefully to make sure he didn't bruise it. Shivers were sent down Nagito's spine, he felt like he was going to drop down and beg for Hajime to keep touching his wings like that. Not only were the wings a sensitive spot, but they were also a pleasurable spot. But Nagito quickly expelled those lewd thoughts from his brain, as Hajime spoke once more. "Jeez, I guess I'm like a walking disaster when I'm with you..."

"No...I was being stupid, being so close to you, trash like me has no right to be-"

"Nagito, if you call yourself trash one more time I swear I will...I will..." But Hajime's mouth had halted, he had no threats. His face turned dark. Did he look almost Crist fallen, for not thinking of a good backlash? Nagito's head tilted to the side, he was confused by Hajime's sudden degrade in personality. 'Is it me again?' 

"Hajime...I"m sorry...I have an...well I sort of have an inferiority complex. But, if you don't like it, I'll try and not say those things..." Nagito said slowly, he had never really told anyone about this. I mean Mikan knew, she had diagnosed him with it, and he had slightly brought it up around Kokichi. But never had he distinctly told anyone about it. It was a slightly relieving to feel a stone removed from his chest, but then the feeling of another boulder replaced it. 'What if he judges me for it?' Nagito screamed mentally, he suddenly felt weak, and pathetic. His stomach did a nasty somersault and he felt his face turn pale. He waited for Hajime to make a remark against him, he held his breath. 

"Nagito...I don't really understand what that is...but thank you for telling me. Also, we should probably head out, Shuichi and Kokichi will probably get angry if we don't show up soon. Also, you look pale are you cool?" Nagito was stunned and bewildered, he...didn't mind?

"Yeah...I'm okay... let's go!" 

... 

"Where were you two? Did you have your blowjob break and then decide to swoop in?" Kokichi said angrily as he stamped his foot. The small boy was very angry, and upset. Nagito and Hajime swooped onto the scene just as it had ended. There was a murder, a young woman who had been murdered in her own home, by her mother who had then been shot by the husband who had fled. 

"Why in God's name did she kill the girl?" Hajime demanded the rage was coursing through his veins. 

"Well...the chart says that she came out as trans women to the mother and father," Shuichi said as he gently placed his halo over his hatted head. He too wore a grim expression on his pale face.

"That's cruel..." Nagito whispered, "Kokichi did you get the mother's soul?"

"Yeah..." Kokichi murmured angrily, he was livid with rage. I mean, who wouldn't be? Killing their own daughter for who she was? Nagito felt sick at just the thought of it. 

"Well, she'll be in a good place soon," Hajime said as he reopened his wings.

"Yeah," Shuichi said as he opened his, Kokichi following suite, as well as Nagito. Kokichi and Shuichi took off into the vortex to the team's next soul collection area, which was Switzerland. Nagito, however, was still standing in the small room, his eyes had not left the poor girl's body. Her eyes were still open, and her face was so scared and so sad at the same time. 'She could have lived such a good life...'

Nagito shook away his incoming tears, and bent down and got to work. He gently lay her arms over her chest and fixed her legs so it would appear that she would be lying down for a nap. Nagito then carefully pushed her bloody hair out of her face, and gently closed her eyes. He then took a nearby blanket and covered her with it, to hide the ugly stab wounds on her stomach. 

"Do think...if they could see us...things would...change?" Nagito whispered to Hajime, who he could tell was still in awe over what Nagito just did.

"W-What do you mean?" Hajime asked as he joined Nagito.

"Do you think...that if they saw death...they would value life?" 

Hajime remained silent. He pressed his hand to his chin deep in thought for a moment. After a few seconds, he finally answered. "They already know death, I mean, everywhere you look death looks too. I don't think it's a matter of truly seeing death, it's a matter of life itself..."

"Life itself, huh? ...Well...maybe that why so many wishes for death...cause life can be just as cruel as death."

... 

"What are you pestering me about at this hour?" Byakuya snapped in great annoyance at Hajime when he entered his study late in the night. Hajime pushed aside his rude comment as continued with his intended purpose. 

"I need your help."

"You always need my help," Byakuya snorted as he sipped his coffee and turned the page of his book, "What do you need?"

"I want you to tell me everything you know about inferiority complexes," Hajime said firmly. What Nagito had told him that day had been eating at him quite a bit.

Byakuya gave Hajime a hard stare. "Why do you need to know about those?"

"I'm just curious..." Hajime lied. 

"Nobody is, 'Just Curious', what is the real reason you ask?" Byakuya asked as he shut his book, and took another sip off his coffee.

"I...I couldn't tell you," Hajime said as he averted his gaze from Byakuya's glaring eyes. 

"Hmm, well then I'm not telling you what it is," Byakuya said in his normal narcissistic and snotty tone. Hajime's face went red with anger. Why couldn't Byakuya just mind his own damn business and answer the question? Was it that hard?

"N-Nagito said..." Hajime bit his lip, he felt gross revealing something that Nagito had confided in him...but...he had too understood this disorder. 'I need to understand him...even if this is just a small detail to him, it's worth it in the long run!' "Nagito says that he had an inferiority complex...and I need to know what it is! I'm trying to understand him better!"

Byakuya's raised his eyebrows. He took another sip of coffee and then set down his mug and cleared his throat. "An inferiority complex is a mental disorder in which one feels less than normal people of society."

"W-What?" Hajime blinked...that was way more than what he was expecting. 

"The person thinks of themself as worthless in the eyes of others that are greater than them. In simple terms, the person almost considers themselves the scum of the world, and often are trying to be used by people above them. They often let people walk all over them without a single complaint. It normally stems from low self-esteem which can be the result of depression and or anxiety-"

"Whoa! Whoa! Wait! Byakuya-!" Hajime made an attempt to cut into Byakuya's rant, he, however, was sliced down. 

"Don't interrupt me and don't make me repeat myself. I've told you what it is so now you can go." Byakuya sneered as he made shooing motions with his hand. Hajime, however, did not move, he remained rooted in the marble floor. 

"No...you have to explain it to me more than that!"

"There's nothing more to explain,"

"No! What about treatment? Can it be treated?"

"In the mortal world therapy is often an option..." Byakuya murmured as he stood up and began to make his way to his office door, "However in a place like hell it is supposed to be impossible to receive such a treatment, so...the real question is, what do you plan to do about it?"

Hajime stayed silent. Why had he even asked in the first place? Was it to just understand? Or was it just to...know that he was trusted? Had he only asked to know that whatever this illness was, he would know that he was trusted enough to be told? Yes...and no in away. Sure he felt awful knowing that his future partner was suffering from an illness that he could never receive treatment for. But did he feel important to know this information? It was a selfish way to think...but he could not deny the feeling of honor that came with knowing about this. Still...just thinking about that made him feel sick to his stomach. Feeling happy about knowing about Nagito's mental disorder? He was sick...

"I don't know..." Hajime whispered as he mindlessly began to follow Byakuya as his mentor led him back to his own chambers. 

"That's the thing Hajime..." Byakuya sneered as he opened the boy's door and shoved him inside for bed, "I'll be damned if you ever know what to do." The blonde then shut Hajime's door with a chuckle and began to make his way back to his own room, leaving Hajime alone once again.


	7. Snogging and Fights

Hajime and Nagito found themselves settled into a normal-ish schedule after a week of soul collection rounds together. The two barely conversed yes, but they also worked well together. They did their work quickly and sufficiently and sometimes spoke to one another. And no conversations ended in fights or erections. 

Kokichi and Shuichi however, were not satisfied. They had grown quite close over the course of that month, and it came to their attention that it was not them who needed to marry, but their brothers. And they felt it necessary to try and coax the two closer before the gala which was planned to be on the first of January. 

"Their like... this close," Kokichi held both hands about three feet apart to show the closeness of his brother and Hajime. "They need to be... this close!"

"Well, I-I don't think that they need to slam that aggressively into one another," Shuichi said after Kokichi made the action. 

"Yes, they do Shumai!" Kokichi yelled in his normal tone, as he jumped up from the bench on which the two were sitting on. The four were outside a hospital, taking a small break from a long day of collecting souls. The team had actually spent that whole day inside that hospital, Hajime and Shuichi made rounds collecting the souls of the elderly, and Nagito had made a collection of a pedophiles soul who had unfortunately avoided the law. Kokichi had offered to collect the soul for his brother, but Nagito told him to go back to Shuichi. 

Nagito and Hajime were sitting on the same bench that was across from the one that their brothers sat on, so they never heard the small talk between the two. Nagito was reading, he had actually finished his first book, and had moved onto another. Hajime considered it odd that Nagito liked to read, he had asked him once why he liked it so much, he simply answered with, 'I just do'. The two were, of course, squeezed to the opposite sides of the bench. 

"What are you reading now?" Hajime asked tentatively to Nagito after a few minutes of uncomfortable silence had passed.

"Hm? Oh... Boy Erased!" Nagito said enthusiastically as he looked up from the pages of his book. 

"What? Isn't that really sad?" 

"Yeah..." Nagito murmured in a gloomy tone. 

"So why are you reading it if it's sad?" Hajime asked as he unconsciously scooted closer to Nagito in sudden fascination with his answer. Nagito felt his face heat up as Hajime scooted closer to him. 

"Well...I think that books with a lot of emotional value mean more to me than some fancy book, sorry, that sounds stupid..."

"No," Hajime said in an airy tone, staring into the sky as he processed what Nagito said. "I think, it makes a lot of sense."

... 

"You're basically the 'I'm Shitty In Flirting' poster child!" Kokichi said angrily one night to his brother when Nagito came back from a trip to Mikans. Nagito had lied and said he went to her for a wing check-up, but in truth, he had to bow his head to her and tell her how he already run out of pills, since he was taking five to six a day. 

"Aw, why do you say that?" Nagito said in a suspiciously normal-sounding tone as he attempted to hide the massive bulge in his pocket. 

"You're not getting anywhere with Hair Boner Nagi! You lit-er-ally reading in front of him!" Kokichi yelled with such enthusiasm his wings unfolded and he flapped in the air for a moment or two. 

"Make fun of my habits later Kokichi, go to bed! You wouldn't want to have dark circles for your Shumai!" 

"Only I get to call him that! Me! Me! Only Me!" Kokichi yelled as he ran down to his own room with a beet-red face. Nagito then made his way into his own room, his smile had faced and his expression was quite grim.

Mikan had scolded Nagito for quite some time, telling him over and over again how dangerous it was to be taking that amount of pain killers. She then went on and on about how his efforts could maybe cause side effects, such as a change in attitude and flight change. Mikan also explained how overusing a medicine could result in one growing immune to the medicine, making it useless against their issue. Nagito had not argued with her throughout any of it, he only nodded his head and promised to not do it again. 

"N-Nagito, I-I re-realize that y-your in pain, b-b-but, your efforts..." She had trailed of for Nagito eyes had gone dull and he seemed to understand. Mikan heaved a sigh and clumsily walked back over to her desk and fumbled for another bundle of pills. She seemed to be murmuring a song under her breath, but Nagito could not quite pick up on the lyrics. He stared down solemnly at the floor, he hated what was happening. His head was in so much pain that he was nearly overdosing on pills, and then his body would reject the pills in his stomach. He had made several close calls with the toilet after only one week on the pills, he almost threw up on Shuichi once. He was hungry, and tired, and confused. Thoughts of Hajime swam around his head like children in a community swimming pool. They were both extremely annoying as well in some ways filthy. 

Hajime was somewhere between stuck on his own planet and floating a million miles away from it. 'He's stubborn, cocky, arrogant, selfish, falsely overconfident...and just in fear of everything. If I even slightly correct him on something he prepares a mini-war! I mean...is he that afraid of being wrong? Or it that he's afraid of being wrong with me? I mean, he acts...scared. I mean I can just assume that he's scared of me...or at least curious about me. And I always see him looking at my wings...well, who would stare at my trashy wings? Whatever... and when he looks at my hand! Why is he so interested in the ring? But I don't mind in a way... I don't mind him looking at me at all. Sure he's... a slight ass, but he's also kind, engaging, smart, funny, and himself. It's hard to define him... but is that a bad thing? Hajime...'

"W-What's he l-l-like?" Mikan whispered as she pressed a bag of pills into Nagito's hand, and began to lead him to her balcony. 

"He is... stubborn," Nagito said, choosing stubborn as the word to describe Hajime at that moment. 

"Hmmm, i-is th-that a bad thing?" She asked tentatively as Nagito expanded his wings. 

"No."

"W-Well is that all? T-There's n-n-nothing else?" 

"He's very handsome...and he's incredibly kind. And he's probably ten times smarter than me, heh, but he hates being wrong. And I can tell he's curious about my wings...and my ring..." Nagito trailed off slowly as he began to consider all he was saying. 

"Do you l-l-love h-him?"

Nagito froze at that question. He blinked once or twice and then responded with, "Of course not, you can't fall for someone if you've only known them for a week."

"Oh...w-why n-not?" Mikan asked with curiosity, her long eyelashes were blinking quite rapidly, with extreme interest as well as an odd sense of worry. 

"You...just can't. I guess it doesn't make sense..." 

"Well, i-in t-that case, d-d-do you l-like him?" Mikan asked as she batted her eyelashes with more curiosity than ever.

And to that Nagito did not have a response. 

...

Hajime was hiding in his favorite place. The bathroom. He found it to be a place of secrecy, and also a place where one could have a good fit or cry. He however at that moment was doing neither of those things, he was just sitting in his shower thinking about nothing. He was tempted suddenly to turn it on, which he did. It took him a second to realize that he still had his clothes on. 

"Fuck..." He hissed under his breath. "I am officially losing it." Throughout that whole week, Hajime had found himself in a constant state of confusion as well as anger, and guilt. Nagito was a force the be reckoned with, and Hajime had the strong urge to reckon him, whatever that meant. Nagito was more of a mystery than any living thing Hajime had ever seen. The brunet considered him to be hiding something from him, actually, he had taken that thought and labeled it as fact. "He has 'Q.P' engraved into his damn flesh! That's not something you're born with!" 

But Nagito's supposed secrets were only part of Hajime's growing frustration. Nagito barely even spoke to Hajime, he was always reading. And when Hajime tried to make talk about it, Nagito gave the most half-assed responses of all time. Which only made Hajime angrier. Hajime never once in his life had considered himself a patient person, but he had always made people believe that he was. But the thing that annoyed him the most about Nagito was the fact that he always wanted to be around him. 

Hajime would crave to see Nagito, in fact, every time he looked at him it was like he had taken a long sniff of happiness cocaine. Nagito's presence was overwhelming to Hajime, the constant fear of saying the wrong thing loomed over the boy like death, even though he was supposed to be some sort of version of death. Or the fear of re-creating the first meeting, hell, even the thought of a boner was enough to scare Hajime half to his never to come death. 

The shower's water was hot against his skin, and his clothes were growing unbearable heavy. But he did not want to get out, the sound of the water hitting the bottom of the tub was a comforting sound to him. But his brain suddenly realized it's a sudden desire for orange juice, so he quickly pulled off his soaking wet clothes and washed before removing himself from the shower.

He pulled on underwear and a robe and called over the intercom for a glass of orange juice. He pulled the blankets over himself as he waited for his drink, his mind was still blank, he was glad to have taken the shower, it had certainly taken his mind off things. When his door opened, Toko walked over to him and nearly chucked the orange juice at his face.

"I-It's t-two in the d-damn m-m-morning! D-Do you w-want m-me to b-b-be uglier?" Toko stuttered out furiously as she clenched her fist. 

"Huh? No! I was just thirsty!"

"I-I think y-y-your pe-perfect-l-ly capable of g-getting some juice!" She sneered.

"Well...I was worried about...I didn't want to think about anything..."

"Oh I-I get i-i-it, y-your th-thinking a-about N-Nagito!" Toko said as a devilish smirk crossed her face. Hajime shuddered at the mention of his future husband's name, thoughts and issues concerning him began to reinvade Hajime's mind.

"T-That's kinda a touchy topic right now," Hajime murmured solemnly as he clutched his bedsheets and lost the hunger for orange juice in an instant.

"L-Let m-me guess, y-you d-don't t-t-trust him?"

"Trust...? Well...it's kinda hard to trust someone that won't tell you anything about themselves!" Hajime said angrily, as this new topic crossed his mind. He had never really thought about trust, in his opinion, relationships were primarily built on trust. Why hadn't it crossed his mind? "No...I don't trust him, how in the hell could I possibly trust him?" Hajime cried with fury as he turned to Toko waiting for her to say something. 

"D-Don't ask me!" She cried in fear as she made a mad dash back to her room, that she shared with Makoto's younger sister, leaving Hajime once again, mad and alone. 

...

Three uneventful weeks went by. And by uneventful I mean completely and entirely nothing happened. Hajime and Nagito remained in their place of barely any communication and trust. In fact, even fewer words were exchanged between the two. Hajime had found ever since his little talk with Toko, he found himself almost avoiding Nagito. He didn't trust him, and in his head, he had begun to create a very long list of why he shouldn't. 

But what made Hajime more suspicious that something was going on with Nagito was the fact that Nagito had also begun to communicate with Hajime less. Nagito was either really into his book, or hiding something in Hajime's opinion. He had begun to obsess over this idea so much that when he received news one night that the gala was in two days as well as his birthday, he spit out his food on Byakuya. 

"You disgusting prick!" Byakuya roared over Hajime's countless apologies. In truth, the damage was not too bad, but recently Byakuya had made friends with an angle that was rather obsessed with keeping things clean. 

"I'm sorry! I was just a little surprised!" Hajime yelled back at Byakuya, all his anger was rushing out of his mouth like a horse on drugs. The two had a small back and forth argument before Hajime's bedroom door swung open, revealing a tried looking Shuichi who had just been woken. 

"Why...? Are you guys...shouting?" He asked as he yawned and rubbed his amber eyes. 

"Your brother decided that I am his new spitting target! But anyway, the two of you are meeting on the island with Nagito and Kokichi tomorrow so you can discuss your plans for the gala. Be in there by noon. Don't you dare be late, and Hajime you will be cleaning your own room from now on?" 

Before Hajime could give a fighting response, Byakuya had strode out the door back to his office. Shuichi blinked his long lashes of few times before he made his way over to a fuming and embarrassed Hajime. "So... what are we gonna do tomorrow?"

"Obviously we're gonna have to go the see them, I'd rather work," Hajime hissed as he puffed out his lips to show his frustration. 

"Why?" Shuichi asked the blue-haired boy was growing quite interested in Hajime's dilemma with Nagito. He had also noticed, as well as Kokichi, that Hajime and Nagito had been more distant than ever over the three weeks that had passed. 

"Well, I'm not very interested in seeing Nagito," Hajime answered in a snotty tone. Shuichi quirked an eyebrow up.

"I-I don't think that's true," He murmured, "I think you just want him to talk, and have him tell you everything about him..."

"Well, I think I have the right to know stuff about him! I mean Kokichi's probably told you everything there is to know about himself!" Hajime said in an argumentative tone.

"Well...yeah, but Nagito and Kokichi are completely different people...Kokichi acts open, but he is actually quite closed..."

"Closed? What do you mean?"

"Well, he has some pretty severe trust issues, that he's hiding from people by lying, I figured that o-out in the beginning," Shuichi admitted truthfully, this was a theory he had formulated a long time ago. "And they say brothers relate to brothers... so I was thinking that, maybe, Nagito also has trust issues. B-But I don't think he's lying about anything...but that doesn't mean he doesn't have secrets."

Shuichi was always brighter than Hajime. That was something that Hajime could fully admit too. Kyoko had created him to be smart, and attentive. "I mean...that makes sense, but that still isn't fair to me, we're supposed to be communicating!" 

"W-Well, are you keeping some things from him?"

"Not really, I and you don't really have much to hide," Hajime admitted truthfully. 

"What about our sexualities?" Hajime froze at that question. Sexuality...? The only thought he had given to his sexuality was when he first considered the fact that Junko's creation might be a boy. Which played slightly to his favor, because Nagito was a he. 'What does that mean though? I don't feel...gay...? Is it just a feeling? Or is it like...just a part of you?'

These thoughts were challenging to Hajime. Was he gay? Was he just thinking about being gay because of Nagito? His sexual orientation was never something he fully contemplated. It was hard to think about something that in it of itself was quite hard to grasp hold of. Hajime had never in his life had feelings for someone. Nobody was really appealing to him, boys, girls, or anything in between. Was he straight? 'But, I think Nagito is handsome...wait! No! Nagito is relatively okay looking. Doesn't that make me gay? But I don't feel like I'm gay, but I've never liked girls! So I must be gay! Right...?' Hajime let out a groan and slapped his forehead. This was giving him a headache. 

"Shuichi...I think you should go to bed..." Hajime whisper, desperately trying to avoid giving himself a big headache. He could feel Shuichi raise his eyebrows and nod. He felt him slide off the bed and make his way to his door. 

"I'm bi...by the way..." Shuichi blurted out to his brother before stumbling out the door. When the door slammed shut, Hajime once again began to attack his pillow. He viciously punched it, over and over again. Why had Shuichi brought that up? He already was struggling enough with everything, and now he had his undefined sexuality on his hands. It was exhausting, and...so...very confusing. 

As Hajime continued to pound his pillow, his mind began to travel to Nagito. His face flashed in front of his eyes, the flashes were very focused on his eyes. And as Hajime saw these flashes, and stared into Nagito's eyes he realized why he wanted to know what was going on with Nagito. His eyes looked so...hurt. He was always flashing Hajime a grin, but his eyes looked as though they were screaming. Why was Hajime so focused on this? Why did he even care? And...why did he want to help him...or no. Why did Hajime want to save him? Save him from whatever was making his eyes so sad.

... 

When Hajime found himself once again sitting across from Nagito on the island, he almost threw something at Nagito to make him put down the book. They all had arrived like normal and Kokichin and Shuichi had instantly gone their separate ways. When working, the two often had an excuse for their limited word exchange. But they were now in full locked room mode, and the couches only filled Hajime's desire to talk to Nagito, or more get Nagito to talk to him. 

"Um, Nagito?" Hajime burled out after ten minutes of silence. 

"Hm?" Nagito said as he looked up from his book and removed his reading glasses. Hajime ignored the little voice in his head that said that Nagito would look much better without his glasses, and hood. 

"Can...we talk?" Hajime said as he attempted to meet Nagito's eyes. He saw Nagito go slightly stiff at the question, but he nodded his head in compliance. Hajime cleared his throat and began to open his mouth to say something when he turned his head to an out of nowhere sound. It had clearly come from the other room, it was the sound of something jumping onto someone, perhaps a couch? "Did you hear that?" Hajime whispered to Nagito as he began to stand up.

"Yeah, do you think something happened?" Nagito asked as he began to walk with Hajime in the direction of the door, which was the slightest bit ajar. 

"Let's check it out, but...we should just peak...in case..." Hajime and Nagito approached the door, Hajime wanted to protest when Nagito bent down to peak through the crack, but he knew they had to be quiet, so he just leaned over him and looked through to crack...

And he had to stop himself from gasping.

The two younger siblings were sitting on the couch, or let me rephrase that, Kokichi was sitting on Shuichi's lap. And they were kissing, or more intensely making out. Shuichi's fingers were clutching the back of Kokichi's purply hair, but he was not pulling too hard. Although it was a bit difficult to see from Hajime's view, he could soon see that Kokichi had wrapped his arms around Shuichi's neck, and he had also lifted his 'Emo' hat. Their heads were tilted slightly as they continued to deepen their kiss, and both their wings had unfolded, and feathers fell to the floor as they continued to kiss. 

After another minute or two, Hajime realized he was holding his breath. And he was not entirely sure he should take a breath, but he eventually did. But it was louder than he expected it to be. Kokichi suddenly stopped, his head turned slightly to the door, his face was quite red, and his lips were wet as well as slightly red. Mostly likely from being nipped by Shuichi. 

"W-Why, did you stop?" Shuichi asked breathlessly, his normally pale face quite red as well, and his lips were equally wet from the spit. Kokichi did not respond immediately, with his eyes still on the door, he grabbed a pillow from the couch and held it in his hands. 

"You're a really good kisser Shumai...but you know... I just can't shake the feeling..." In half an instant Kokichi had flown across the room and slammed the pillow directly into Hajime's face, who crashed down on the floor due to the forceful impact. "That we're being watched!" 

"What the fuck?" Hajime yelled at Kokichi as he sat up and began to rub his back.

"Why didn't you take a damn picture? It would preserve the memory! You fucking pervert!" Kokichi sneered as he stuck out his tongue.

"Why the hell are you not attacking Nagito!" Hajime yelled at Kokichi, he had gone red in the face with anger. 

"You're not my brother Hair Boner! Now take what you've learned and try it with Nagi and leave us alone!" Kokichi yelled as he stamped his foot on the ground, and flew back into the room, slamming the door shut with such a force the sound echoed out over the now silent room. 

"Pffff...um sorry, no, not funny!" Nagito said as he struggled to hold back his giggles. Hajime, however, was fuming on the floor. How had Kokichi and Shuichi gotten so close? It was supposed to be like that for him and Nagito! 'We're trying to prove that we can do this! We are supposed to be that close! We have a god damn gala tomorrow! They're probably looking down on us, seeing how we never talk! While Kokichi and Shuichi are three seconds away from stripping! I have to do something! I have to make some sort of move. I will not be made of a fool out of!'

"Nagito!" Hajime said as he jumped up.

"Hajime, I would be careful, Kokichi pushed you pretty hard-"

"Kiss me."

Those words rang out like a baby hitting the floor. So odd and unnatural, and in that moment so wrong sounding. Hajime felt his stomach double three times, and he felt suddenly clammy, stupid, and humiliated. He watched the grim disappear of Nagito's face, his expression contorted into something of confusion and terror. 

"W-What?" He whispered as he slowly began to stumble backward.

"W-We're supposed to be close, we never talk! So we need to prove that we can stand each other! We can't fall short of their expectations! I know you hate me but-!"

"I don't hate you..."

"Save it Nagito, I know you do!" Hajime yelled, his voice had risen, not with fear, but with noticeable anger. His rage was spilling over. "You don't ever talk! You're always just reading, and you look like you wanna put a bullet in your head when I ask you a question!"

"Well, maybe I'm nervous!" Nagito said, his voice was wavering between a yell and a whisper. 

"Fucking bullshit!" Hajime yelled back, his voice was cracking. Why was he saying this stuff? Wasn't he supposed to be proving that he was getting along with Nagito? "You have something say! You don't say anything!"

"Well, maybe I don't want to say anything!" Nagito said, his voice was louder this time, he was finally saying something.

"Why? Is it because you're afraid? Are you afraid I'll ask about who you are? Are you afraid of me Nagito-!"

"Maybe I am Hajime! Maybe that is why I'm reading that book!"

"Oh so now you say something! Well since your talking finally! Let's start with some questions! How about those scars on your wings! Did you add them to show your undying love and devotion to Junko? Or..." Hajime had started yelling and coaxing Nagito, but his voice had faded out. He had gone too far. His mouth opened and closed without a single word leaving it, he felt like throwing up. Nagito's face had gone pale. And his body had begun to tremble. His wings had unfolded, and he looked like he had stared death in the face. "I-I...Nagito!" But before Hajime could scream an apology, Nagito had entered the vortex.

He was gone.


	8. Just Act Like You Can Stand Me

"Hair Boner! I told you to leave us alone!" Kokichi snapped angrily, when Hajime burst into the second room, in a full state of panic. Hajime, however, ignored his nasty remark, he was too desperate to give a damn.

"I need you to take me too hell!" Hajime yelled.

Kokichi snorted. "Sure, that will be two dollars-!"

"I'm being serious!" Hajime yelled as he stormed over to Kokichi his face was red with anger, and also guilt. He had to apologize to Nagito, he had too, it was not a thing that was going to be questioned, it was going to be done. "I need to talk to Nagito!" 

"W-Why?" Shuichi asked as he stood from the couch, he lifted Kokichi from his lap earning him a 'Hey!' but he ignored it at the moment, he could sense that this was not a joke. "What happened? Why did he leave?"

"We got into a fight! Kokichi please!" Hajime said desperately, his face was going from mad to frustrated to desperate to deathly pale as fast as changing traffic lights. Kokichi's cheerful expression faded out, his face darkened.

"What the fuck did you do?" His tone was now deathly serious, and altho he was small, he looked terrifying. He clenched his fist and began to make his way over to Hajime, who had swallowed a large forming lump in his throat. "What did you do to him?"

"N-Nothing... we just had an argument-!" But Hajime was cut off by a slap to the face, Kokichi had unfolded his wings and risen to Hajime's level.

"I lie a lot, and what you just said is a god damn lie. You started something, didn't you? Well?" Kokichi had no remorse in his voice, his face was terrifying. Hajime stumbled backward, he was very intimidated by Kokichi.

"Wait! K-Kokichi! I think you should let him say sorry for whatever he did," Kokichi turned to face Shuichi his wings flapped with less intensity, and his face had softened by a considerable amount. "I think we should go... I-I've always wanted to see hell..."

Kokichi gave a small giggle. "I don't know what B.S they tell you in Heaven, but I'll warn ya', hell is not very nice. But," He then turned and gave Hajime another death glare. "We do have the gala tomorrow, and I and Shumia have a little plan that we would rather not go wrong. So, sure! Let's get the hell to hell!"

Hajime rubbed his throbbing cheek, it would soon bruise, but Hajime knew he deserved it. He wished that it was Nagito who had slapped him because it was he who Hajime insulted and treated like shit.

Kokichi instructed the two to get ready for flight and took Shuichi's hand without a single bit of hesitation. He...aggressively... took Hajime's wrist. "Okay, listen very carefully, the first rule is that you should not speak to anyone unless necessary. You angels in hell are basically the scum and snot of the world. And no matter what happens, you will not interfere if anything happens between me and the other reapers. You will follow me, and you cannot fly anywhere unless I'm in front of you. Shumai, if you don't want to get beaten alive, please let go of my hand when we get into the courtyards. Okay, ~?"

"Wait a sec-!"

"Kokichi! Shuichi! Hajime!" And as soon as those words left the small boy's mouth, the three were consumed by a flash of blinding white light. Hajime and Shuichi fond themselves clinging to Kokichi for dear life. They found themselves in the typical vortex tube but instead of taking a usual right. They felt jerked to the left by Kokichi. And as soon as they were they felt as though they were being repeatedly plunged into ice-cold water, only then to be pushed into the lava. The air around them was thick, and the walls of the tube were a dark black and crimson. But the most terrifying part for the bothers was the screams that echoed throughout. They were like nails on a chalkboard for the two. Hajime was almost dropped when he made the attempt to cover his ears. As a response, Kokichi called back, "Can you maybe not move?"

Hajime was about to scream his own snippy response when he felt his feet slam into something resembling aground. The sudden impact caused him to collapse, the air had left his lungs faster than light. But when he tried to draw breath he felt like a hot iron had been pressed to his lungs, never had he been surrounded by air this blistering hot. As he tried to suck in air, he noticed how the earth was something resembling ash. It was all over his hands, as well as his pants. When he finally remembered how to breathe again, he nearly screamed at his surroundings. He was bent over on a small island, which was surrounded by something like lava, which was radiating more heat than a sweaty teen. In front of his, was a gate, which seemed to be as tall as the greatest skyscrapers in the world. The iron was black as night, and words were carved into it, they looked to be in french. Hajime rolled his eyes at this, he had refused french lessons from Byakuya on more than one occasion. He now wished he hadn't.

"My my, Kokichi!" Someone said, a woman, she had dark blue hair, a plain face, and glasses. She looked mysterious, and she wore a fake smile. Hajime already disliked her. "You've brought some bunnies into a snake pit!"

Kokichi did not respond to that remark, he only asked a question, "Did Nagito pass through?"

"Of course! He looked like a kicked puppy!" She said with a giggle. Hajime stood up from the ground, he wanted to give her a piece of his mind! But Kokichi's arm flew over his mouth before he could say a word.

"Did you already forget what I said?" He hissed, "Tsumugi, may we pass?"

"How could I ever refuse?" She said with a grin before snapping her fingers. And suddenly the trio found themselves transported to the other side of the gate. Hajime let out a gasp, the air was even hotter and thicker out there. He was tempted to sit and take a breath. But he jumped quite a bit when Kokichi yelled.

"Don't stop! Keep on the path! If you stop the souls will try and grab you! We can't fly anywhere until we get to the city!" Kokichi yelled over his shoulder as he began to make a quick pace with Shuichi behind him. Hajime lept to his feet, muttering under his breath about how Kokichi didn't have to make it so obvious that he disliked him.

As Hajime continued to walk along the path, he felt eyes glued to his body. He glanced around and found himself mesmerized by Hell. The path seemed to be the only sort of walking the land in the place. And the sky seemed to be nonexistent, for there were only grey and red smoke above their heads. Hajime looked at the magnificent lava, it looked deadly, but where were the souls? This question was quickly answer, however. On a small portion of land, Hajime spotted a soul. His body came to an involuntary halt, he felt his already limited breath hitch in his lungs. A man, with an evil expression and a funny mustache, was casually playing cards, without a care in the world. Hajime's jaw fell open, why was he not being punished for his actions? He had murdered millions! Why wasn't he-? And then Hajime screamed.

The radged hand of a transparent figure had closed around his ankle. The hand felt like a hot poker against his clothed skin. The soul was screaming foul names at the boy, and Hajime was making a failed attempt to kick it off him. His skin was burning, and he was being dragged.

"Off!" Kokichi screamed as he brought his scythe down on the soul's wrist. It let out a vomit-inducing scream, and shrank back into the lava, cursing Kokichi. "Are you okay Hair Boner?"

"Y-Yeah..." Hajime whispered as he was helped to his feet by his brother, his ankle was still burning, but it was not bad as Hajime felt it to be. He stared at Kokichi for a moment. His scythe was dangerously sharp, and his wings made him look almost invincible.

"Let's just go..." Shuichi whispered in terror, as they began to walk again. Hajime glanced back at the man, his face was so carefree. Oh what Hajime could have given to pounding his face in. But he shook off those thoughts, he had a mission that needed to be completed. 'The blue-haired girl said he looked...' Hajime bit his lip, wishing that he could reverse time.

After what felt like an eon of walking, Hajime felt his lungs fill with most air he had drawn since entering hell. His eyes had been on the ashy ground throughout the entire walk, had he not realized that they had made it to the city? He hadn't. Hajime's olive eyes shot up, and he gasped. The city was magnificent, black glassed buildings towered above his head, and the streets were full of silent life. And there was no screaming. Hajime however, was a bit taken back by how silent the Reapers were. They seemed to walk as quietly as mice, and brief whispers were exchanged as trades were made between them. But another surprising thing to both Hajime and Shuichi was the fact that all the Reapers had their wings unfolded. Folding one's wings was considered much easier than having them hang.

But Hajime's interest in their wings quickly faded away when he saw the glares that were being cast towards the group. He gulped. Did he have something on his face? But when he took a closer look, he figured out that they were mainly for a particular purple-haired boy. As they continued to follow Kokichi, the traffic on the streets cleared away when they made their way through. As though coming into contact with Kokichi would get them sick.

"Um, Kokichi? Why is everyone-?"

"Ignore it Shumai, just keep your eyes front-" Kokichi tried to snip back but he was interrupted by a new voice.

"Kokichi! I thought we told you to stay out of our center!" A man's voice boomed. He emerged from the crowd, along with another. He had oldy styled purple hair, a purple mustache looking thing, and a ridiculous outfit. The other person was a girl she had blood-red eyes, and long brown hair which was tied into two long ponytails, and her gaze was mesmerizingly cold. The man stomped forward to Kokichi, who faces had darkened considerably, he seemed quite troubled by this man.

"Kaito... kindly fuck off..." Kokichi said with a tone so serious and dead set it made everything he said to Hajime previously look like a joke. Kokichi was much smaller than this Kaito person. Which was why it was so easy for Kaito to strike him down.

"Kokichi!" Shuichi cried out as soon as Kaito's fist met Kokichi's nose. Both brothers attempted to lunge forward to help Kokichi, but they found themselves behind the girl's scythe. Which was razor-sharp and had held a few millimeters from both of their necks. They began to helplessly watch Kaito bring his fist down on the poor boy.

"Don't interfere-" The girl began to instruct, but Shuichi paid no attention. He dived under the girls scythe and shoved Kaito off Kokichi with every bit of straight he could muster. Kaito who had not been expecting this sudden action toppled of Kokichi and landed on the ashy group.

"Kokichi-!"

But Shuichi's desperate plea for Kokichi to get up was met with he himself being knocked to the ground. Kaito looked like an enraged bull, his face was flared and red. "You got some nerve-!"

"Let him up Kaito!" Someone yelled out into the streets. The voice was deep and clear, and reassuring in some sort of odd way. Hajime snapped his head up to find the source of their savor, but he had to look down a little bit. Three people emerged from the crowd, two girls and one man. The girl on the right had brown purple-tipped hair, along with round glasses and braces and lots of freckles. The girl on the left had dyed purple hair that looked like it had been dyed many times. She also wore glasses, however, hers were more square, she looked taller than she actually was, for she also wore black platforms. And she also looked like a piece of garbage. But the man in the middle was the most noticeable of the three. He was...very short. He wore a cat ear like hat and clenched a cigarette in between his teeth, and his eyes were obnoxiously large. But they also looked kind. "It would be a dumb choice to punch an angel, especially that angel."

"Since when have you been helping people Ryoma?" Kaito spat at the short man, who name Hajime assumed to be Ryoma.

"Ever since Maria and Jojo and I became teammates. Now, let that angel up. Now."

Kaito sneered and then backed of Shuichi, who gasped for air. The girl swung her scythe behind her head, and it swiftly disappeared into thin air. Hajime pushed past her instantly to make sure that his brother was okay. But Shuichi had already begun to crawl like an animal towards the still barley conscious Kokichi. But Kaito had already made it over to him as well as Shuichi. "Fly home, you fucking fairies." And he then proceeded to spit on Kokichi. "Let's go Maki."

The girl named Maki and Kaito walked away from them as if nothing had ever happened, they also ignored Hajime yells at them like the wind. "Get back here! Who the fuck do you think you are-?"

"Can you stop screaming?" The purple-haired girl, who's named Hajime would learn to be Jojo said with an eye roll. "I think you have a more pressing matter on why you're here."

"His nose is definitely broken..." The Reaper named Maria said gently as she examined Kokichi's face. "He needs to go to Mikan right away!"

"O-Okay, um, w-who's that?" Shuichi asked tentatively, still clearly shaken as well as nervous about meeting new people.

"She's the medical professional of Hell," Ryoma said lazily as he took a long drag of his cigarette, and made his way over to Hajime. "So... I presume your the older brother?"

"Yes! Do you know where Nagito is?"

Instantly the square went from silent, to suddenly humorous. There were some snickers among the people, and a few people gave ridiculing laughs. Ryoma rolled his eyes with annoyance. "Yeah, I saw the kid pass-through. Do you need to see him?"

"Yes..." Hajime murmured. Ryoma gave the burnet a questioning glare, but still shrugged and then made his way back towards Jojo, Maria, Shuichi, and a slightly more conscious Kokichi. Who's puffy eyes and broken nose made him look like the poster child for preventing bullying.

"You with the hat," Maria said to Shuichi, who responded with a shacky 'Yeah?', "Can you please carry him? I and Jojo are gonna take y'all to Mikan's."

"Um, y-yeah. Hey... Kokichi? Is that fine with you?" Kokichi's mouth then roughly formed out a yes. Shuichi gave a loud swallow, and then very carefully slipped his arms under Kokichi, making sure to keep his head rested against his shoulder. He gripped his tiny body like a baby, whispering little words of sympathy.

"Okay, Ryoma, we'll be off. Meet ya at the bar!" Jojo called back to the sort man as the group of four made their way to a take-off zone. Leaving Hajime alone with Ryoma. Who had already began to make his way towards another take of the zone, this one was to the left. Hajime nervously followed, trying his best to ignore the fierce eyes of the reapers who looked down on him like he was some sort of virus.

When the two reached the designated place, they both spread their wings. But Hajime almost had to retract them as soon as they were opened. His wings seemed to boil with pain, almost like he had received a stove burner. "Why are my wings burning?"

"It's your first time flying in the underworld, I'd be mindful," Ryoma said casually as he began to take to the red-gray sky. Hajime followed him, however, he was incredibly slow, and he felt like every time he beat his wings it was like a rock was being added to them. "So why are you going to see Nagito?"

"We... argued," Hajime said slowly still trying to concentrate on flying.

"That's a stupid reason," Ryoma muttered as he tossed his first cigarette and lit another.

"Why were they so amused by me saying his name? And why the hell was Kokichi nearly beaten to a pulp?" Hajime demand. He had just about had enough of people treating him like he was just some sort of joke.

"Those two haven't exactly got the best reputation."

"What do you mean?"

"Creations of Junko and Mukuro, it's basically set in stone that they'll be hated by their subjects," Ryoma said simply, before taking a long inhale of his cigarette.

"So why the hell are you hanging out with them?" Hajime retorted.

"Because I was sick of seeing the poor kids get beaten alive, and since Maria and Jojo couldn't stand it." 'Oh...' Hajime thought with remorse, 'So he does have someone! Why is he always acting so solitarily-?' "But they still don't trust us, which is pretty damn fair from my point of view. Poor brats..."

The two flew in silence for the rest of the journey. Hajime's brain seemed to be exploding with so much new information he felt the urge to write it down on his arm so he wouldn't forget anything. To Hajime, it seemed in a way, that Nagito and Kokichi could have people in their lives, but was it their trust issues that were keeping them away from people who extended a helping hand?

But Hajime quickly placed those idea's in the storage part of his brain and continued to fly. After another minute or two, a tall tower came into his view, it was made of what looked to be black glass, and it seemed to be almost empty. Ryoma swooped towards it making Hajime follow close behind. They landed on a small balcony that was on the second to last floor, it was covered in black feathers and it seemed to have a gloomy aura. "Nagito should be on the floor above this one," Ryoma said as Hajime folded his wings and began to make his way towards the glass door. "Treat him, kind kid, okay?"

Hajime said nothing. He only gave a curt nod of his head and opened the door, and made his way inside. There was absolutely nothing in the room, not counting the spiral staircase in the middle of the room. Hajime felt instantly sick to his stomach in a nervous sort of way. His stomach was churning and his brain was giving off the strong urge to turn around and leave. But he had to apologize. He just had to. So he shakily made his way to the stairway and began to make the short climb upstairs only to be met with a dark wood door. Which he rapped three times and waited for a response. After a minute or two, he knocked again. Still no answer. He rolled his eyes impatiently as he turned the doorknob and walked him.

The room barely contained anything other than a few necessities. But there was also a bed, which was concealed by black curtains, to Hajime it seemed like a very 'Nagito like' place. "N-Nagito?" Hajime said with a slight stutter, his nerves were eating away at him. No response came. Hajime walked up to the black curtains and very quietly pulled them aside.

Nagito was laying on his side, still wearing his hood and his wings lay unfolded behind him almost like an odd blanket. His hands were clutching his arms and every second or two he would curl his legs closer up to his chest. He looked like a child who had just discovered that Santa wasn't real, Hajime could already tell that his face was upset even though he could not even see it.

Hajime sank his teeth further into his lip not knowing what to say or do. But he himself had been comforted before as a child, he remembered what Makoto used to do. He would always sit down on the side of the bed and begin to speak about what he needed to say, so that's just what he did. Hajime sat himself down on the edge of the bed, careful not to accidentally sit on his wings. And after a few minutes of gathering what the hell he was going to say, Hajime spoke. "I... know I say this a lot. I-I don't even think it means anything at this point...but... I'm sorry Nagito. I should have never said those things to you, you don't deserve any of them. And... I don't know, why I was so angry. Or why I keep bringing up Junko. But... it's not your fault. Not even in the slightest. And, you don't have to say it's okay, because... it's not."

Nagito did not speak, or move. He stayed perfectly still. Hajime swallowed a thick wad of spit that had formed in his throat. 'What the hell am I expecting?' Hajime thought in a self-defeating tone. Hajime made his way to stand up, his full weight had almost left the bed when Nagito's wheezy but clear voice spoke. "I've only met her once... Junko."

Hajime sat back down. "When I was eight, Kokichi was only seven. She summoned us to her palace. We had never been there before. And we had only ever met Mukuro. Kokichi was nervous, but I said not to be scared." Nagito was clearly reciting a memory, Hajime was instantly captivated, "When we got there... we were drugged and then taken to the dungeons. We woke up with our wings strapped down to a table and we had no idea what was happening. She came in like nothing was happening at all. And do you know what she said Hajime?"

"N-No," Hajime whispered, he had gone livid. He could tell this was not going to end happily.

"'Can you put 'Q.P' on them? That sounds like... fancy!' Some guy nodded and then he... he..." Nagito had curled himself into the tightest ball. He was shaking and shivering. Hajime too was trembling. "He cut it into our wings. Kokichi first. I passed out for a moment when I saw what they were doing to him... but I couldn't stop them..." Nagito was taking in short breaths, and Hajime was helplessly watching. "And then they did mine. And then they knocked us out again. And dumped us back in our own tower, like we were some sort of lab rats. We could not receive treatment for the cuts, he had to let them scar. We are... 'Queen Property' that's all we are."

Hajime felt sick. He had caused Nagito of liking Junko... of being in association with that... that witch! He felt his breakfast stir noisily in his stomach. He felt like he should be dragged into the lava by those souls, and maybe he could have a card game with Hitler's soul. He felt stupid, anguished, and horrible.

But his eyes had found their way to the scars. They were perfectly carved, proving that Nagito and Kokichi could resist them carving those humiliating letters into their skin. The skin itself looked rough and layered, most likely from uneven healing. Hajime shuddered. Never in his life had he received an injury worse than a paper cut, and even those he would heal in a second. But this was on a whole another level of hurt and pain. Words of sympathy seemed almost laughable to Hajime at that moment. Not that he could ever really find good words, he often found physically expressing himself far easier than any sort of speech. So he tried something.

Very gently and very carefully, Hajime reached his hands under Nagito's scarred wing. Nagito instantly flinched and froze at this sudden touch. "Shh..." Hajime whispered in a lulling sort of tone. He then swallowed his pride and ignored the blossoming blush on his tan cheeks and leaned down and...

Gently pressed his lips against those hideous scars.

It was only for a brief moment, but it seemed to have a lasting effect. Nagito's skin was soft and rough, but still warm and full of life. Hajime's nose had brushed against his feathers which were like silk in texture as well as perfectly groomed. But during this brief peck, Hajime had expected Nagito to push him off, however, all he received in response was Nagito letting out a small squeak and a wing flutter. Nagito had instantly sat up to face Hajime, his jaw was open and his face was pink as well as confused. "W-Why did you do that?"

"It was something... Makoto did... when I scraped my knee... it was supposed to help it feel better," Hajime whispered, more to himself in away. He felt even stupider now.

"Look Hajime..." Nagito whispered as he shifted upwards slightly. "I know you don't trust me. And... I also get that you want to put yourself out there as the one that's always right. But... you don't have to prove it like that. You can just fake it! I'm not worth those gestures. Right?"

"Nagito... I didn't do that because I wanted to prove that we can stand each other!" Hajime snapped, clearly angry that Nagito was missing his point. "I did it because you looked like you needed it!"

Silence.

Nagito continued to stare into Hajime's eyes. Searching for any sort of detection of a lie. Hajime swallowed. He was telling the truth! Who wouldn't do something like that when you found out that your future partner had been brutally tortured! Nagito's eyes swam with an unreadable emotion. He too then swallowed. And gently whispered out, "Just act like you can stand me Hajime, there really no need to pretend."

'But I'm not pretending! Stop trying to push everyone under the sun away from you! I'm here! Can't you see that!' Hajime screamed mentally. That voice in his head was like a rabid monkey, beating against the bars of its cage begging to be heard by the person in front. But those thoughts were never heard.

They were only stored and twisted with anger.


	9. The Younger Siblings Are Always The Most Misbehaved

That night Hajime had a mini soccer tournament with his pillow. He kicked it around his room with so much passion and anger that it struck the chandelier. Hajime rolled his eyes at this, he then opened his wings and furiously yanked it out, only then to aggressively slam it into the ground again. 

"Am I interrupting something?" Byakuya sneered as he entered the room carrying a box as well as a cup of coffee. Kyoko also entered, giving an eye roll to Hajime's childish behavior. 

"Why are you here?" Hajime murmured as he scooped up his pillow and threw it on his bed, as though trying to hide the evidence of his actions.

"The gala is tomorrow as you know, and we came to bring you your uniform," Kyoko said simply as she eyed the room looking at the mess. Byakuya threw the box at Hajime, who caught it and nearly flipped Byakuya off. "Wear that tomorrow and look presentable and I'll leave you alone," Kyoko said in her usual monotone voice before she walked out of the room briskly.

"What's her problem?" Hajime hissed as he set the box down on his bed and began to unwrap the layers of tissue paper.

"You did make a very risky trip to Hell," Byakuya snorted as he began to look through Hajime's bookshelf in search of a novel he may not have read yet, "I guess you received a warm welcome."

"It's a small burn, it will be healed in a few more minutes," Hajime retorted back at Byakuya, he could sense his eyes on his healing ankle. Which he had examined when he returned home that night. The doctor had given him some healers and told him to be gentle with it, but other than that, he reported that there was no problem with it. 

"What even happened?"

"Why do you care?"

"I don't but sadly it's my job to make sure your life is halfway decent," Byakuya replied in a 'No Fucks Given' tone. 'Well, that's one way to put it,' Hajime thought, as he pulled the top off the final layer of tissue paper. Revealing a fine suit, with black pants a black blazer, and a black-tie. "You can wear whatever undershirt you want," Byakuya added as he examined a novel on Hajime's shelf. 

"Why... do people push people away?" Hajime asked out loud. He then quickly covered his mouth, as if that would take back what he just said.

"Shouldn't you know?" Byakuya said in a carefree but firm tone, "You've pushed many people away, Makoto, Kyoko, me, and sometimes even your own brother."

"Well, that's cause all you guys do for me is worry!" Hajime snapped, as he slammed the box shut again. Just looking at that suit made him want to hit something. "I don't want to be followed around by a bunch of people who watch my every move and ponder my every emotion!"

"Well, that could be a reason for self seclusion," Byakuya admitted truthfully, "But there can also be other things, like for instance, the fear of hurting those who care about you. Or maybe them hurting you."

"Why does he think the world is out to get him? Why does he think every damn human on this earth is going to hurt him!" Hajime half-shouted at no one in particular. 

"Well you did hurt him," Byakuya said calmly, he seemed to finally understand what Hajime was struggling to understand. 

"He was on top of me!"

"Was he hurting you?"

"I was uncomfortable!" Hajime yelled, he had begun to shake. His lips were trembling, and guilt filled his stomach like boiling water. His body felt heavy, and his heart was hammering against itself. 

"You play the role of the victim terribly!" Byakuya sneered, as he placed the book back onto the shelf, and walked over to Hajime. Who's knee's had given in and he himself had fallen to the floor. He was shaking, and his eyes were burning. Byakuya bent down to Hajime's level. "You apologize over and over to him, at this point, they're as half-assed as your conversations. And when you 'Apologize' you never even state the true reason why you did what you did. Damnit, why can't you see it? Apologies have to mean something! You and that boy have entered a cycle, of you picking a fight with him, then hurting him in some way, and then you give some dumb apologies. And he accepts them because he could never refuse you."

Hajime felt like vomiting. He wanted to disappear. He wanted to take a bath in lava. He wanted to scream. Thoughts pounded around in his brain, so hard they seemed painful. Hajime clutched the velvet rug, letting his knuckles turn white and his arms lock. 

Byakuya stood and re-adjusted his glass, and gave a disgusted sort of eye roll. "It's tragic... that that boy cares for you so much."

Hajime heard his mentor leave. He did not dare protest, nor did he call for help. He remained in the same place. Until he suddenly found himself in his bed, clutching the sheets almost as tight as the rug. He curled in on himself. He felt awful. Because everything Byakuya had said, was true.

But then again, when was he ever wrong?

... 

"Nagi can I please do your hair!" Kokichi whined for the millionth time as Nagito straighten his own tie, for the millionth time. One had to admit that Nagito did look quite appealing that night. He wore a typical black suit, with the standard black blazer as well as black pants. But what made him look so eye-catching was his silk black undershirt that had its sleeves rolled up at the elbows. He looked sharp, and his presence seemed to grow when his face was not being concealed by his baggy hood. Speak of the face, he had been sat down by his little brother for at least two hours, only to be pampered with all sorts of products that he would never fully understand the purpose of. 

"Why did you put eye stuff on me?" Nagito said curiously as he prodded with his face. 

"That 'Eye Stuff', is called concealer! And your eyes are darker than a modern teenager's room and what not! It makes you look kinder!" 

"Yeah, but what about, like... the lip stuff?" 

"It makes your face look nice! Now can I please do your hair!" Kokichi groaned.

"Let me tie this first! You can't go to a dance with an untied bow tie," Nagito murmured as he began to hastily tie his brother's ridiculously tied tie. 

"I don't wanna wear this! It's nerdy!"

"Kokichi it's mandatory and it's cute..." Nagito added to make his brother angry. He let a small laugh pass through his own teeth and continued to loop the tie in on itself. Nagito's stomach was churning a little, and his wings dared to unfold with nervous jitters. He couldn't deny the fact that he was nervous, but he would be lying if he said he wasn't excited. 

"Okay Okay! You've tied the tie! Now sit down and let me fix your hair!" Kokichi said impatiently as he grabbed a hairbrush and some elastics from his own desk, and began to work. Nagito clenched his teeth as Kokichi pulled and brushed his hair back, it certainly wasn't something he was used to. "By the way, why are you wearing those dumb gloves?"

"I like these, I think they go well with the outfit!" In truth, the real reason that Nagito was wearing those black velvet gloves, was because they were long enough to conceal his wrist. And for reasons only known to him, that reason was everything. 

"You're going to be holding your boyfriend's hand! I don't know Nagi... I don't think Hair Boner has a glove kink..."

"Thats not a kink Kokichi."

"It is if I say it is!" Kokichi snapped as he purposely gave Nagito's hair a yank. After a few more minutes of back and forth, the purple-haired boy removed his hands from his brother's head and gave a triumphant nod. Nagito raised his eyebrows as he examined his reflection. Kokichi had braided two braids into his hair and had then tied those two, along with the rest of his hair into a low-ish ponytail. However, Kokichi had let some hairs stray away, making the ponytail look almost lazy, but still, it made him look stunning. "Do you like it?"

"You've made trash look good..." Nagito murmured to his brother, earning him a flick to the back of the head. The two stood up and began to make their way to the floor on which they would depart to the hall. 

"Shumai said that it's Hair Boner's birthday today..." Kokichi said as he began to busy himself with a piece of his hair.

"It is?" Nagito exclaimed with much more shock than he intended. He suddenly felt, guilty in a sense. It was Hajime's birthday, and he was going to a gala about a marriage that he didn't even want. It seemed like a shitty birthday idea to Nagito. 

"Do you like Hair Boner Nagi?" Kokichi asked innocently, but Nagito could easily tell that he was trying to investigate his relationship with Hajime. If they even had one at the moment.

"Yeah... I like him. But not like... like... yet. I don't know Kokichi, why do you ask?" Nagito said in an exasperated tone. Kokichi did not immediately answer, he seemed to be formulating something good to say to his brother, He continued to spin his hair between his fingers and suck in his cheeks as he tilted his head to the side and thought for a little while.

"Let's say... hypothetically... that something was to happen at the party that might allow you and Hair Boner to get closer," Kokichi murmured as he turned his head slyly to face his brother, "And let's say that I was the person behind this thing, would you be mad at me?"

"It depends on the thing, would it be something big?" Nagito questioned with raised eyebrows. 

"Couldn't say... after all, it's just a hypothetical situation..."

... 

Hajime walked onto the Island that was nowhere, in a bad mood. And as he stood in front of the many Angels and nearly nonexistent Reaper group, he remained in a bad mood. But then again in those recent days, Hajime had never been in anything short of a bad mood. 

Hajime stood next to Shuichi, who wore a similar suit, and a smile that was a little too wide for Hajime's liking. The burnet had busied himself by trying not to observe the white-haired male the stood very close to him. His cheeks had already been reddened greatly from when he saw Nagito enter the room through hell's door. It would be a lie to say he hadn't considered Nagito handsome.

Makoto at that moment was giving a long drawn out speech. And Hajime was letting his words travel through one ear and exit out the next without a second thought. Hajime could only assume that the speech was about the normal B.S, stuff like how the loss of purgatory would only be temporary, and how everyone wished Queen Junko could be there that night. But Hajime's thoughts swam with two thoughts at that moment. 

The first one was the thought of how he could try and survive this party with his superiors breathing down his neck. However, it was the second thought on which he was focused on more. That thought being why Junko had not bothered to show up. This was supposedly a very important event, but as Hajime considered that, he also came to realize that the only Reapers in that room were Nagito, Kokichi, and Mukuro. Where were all the Reapers?

"... We thank you all for being here, now please enjoy yourselves!" Makoto finished with a triumphed smile. Everyone broke into light applause before giving a bow and beginning to make their way to the refreshments table. 

Hajime swallowed thickly before he turned his head to face Nagito. "Hey..."

"Hi..." Nagito murmured as the two began to make their way off the small stage and over to no particular part of the room. Nagito looked fidgety in a way to Hajime, perhaps he was worried that Hajime considered him different? Hajime let his mind momentarily wander to what Nagito had said the previous day. 'Queen's property... huh?' Hajime thought.

Yes, of course, the idea was troubling to Hajime, in fact, it was rather horrifying. Having words engraved into your wings for the rest of your never-ending life. It seemed like a nightmare. But... there was something more pressing on Hajime's mind. Why? Sure to make a point. But what kind of point would it make? 'All the Reaper's know who they are, so it's definitely not used to make a social standpoint. So what's the point? Is it to show her power? Or is it to make an effect on Nagito and Kokichi-?' "Hajime? You look dazed," Nagito said gently as he waved his gloved hand inches away from Hajime's face. 

"Huh? Oh! Em, sorry. I was just a bit lost in thought."

Nagito gave a stiff nod and when Hajime gave a look around he suddenly became aware of the fact that the two were standing next to the food table. The two boy's eye's zoomed from one side of the table to the other, eyeing the food like starving hawks. Appetizers, main courses, meat on the bone. 

But what caught both of their eyes, was a plate of chocolates, which was seemingly being devoured by two younger siblings. Kokichi and Shuichi looked up with their mouths full and their cheeks bludging like chipmunks. "Did you want some?" Kokichi asked through a mouth full, his words were slurred and hard to understand.

"Kokichi, it's not nice to talk with a mouthful..." Nagito said in a mother-like tone.

"Hush up Nagi! Let us enjoy our lives!" Kokichi snapped before taking a huge swallow and stamping his foot. 

"T-There's gonna be a dance," Shuichi said in a tentative voice, "Are you guys gonna dance?"

"No," Hajime responded instantly, "I don't like dancing."

"Hair Boner you've been lonely your whole life, you probably don't know how to dance!'' Kokichi said with a giggle. Hajime's ears went quite pink at that, he had to grit his teeth in the attempt to resist tackling Kokichi. 

"When is the dance Shuichi?" Nagito asked calmly as he shot Kokichi a warning gaze. 

"Pretty soon I g-guess," Shuichi said, as he avoided looking at the two older boys. Hajime's gut seemed to grumble, something was definitely off about the way Shuichi was acting. Normally Shuichi was an introverted person, but he had never had trouble looking people in the eyes. He looked twitchy like he was hiding something. 

Hajime, however, pushed aside those thoughts of doubt about his brother. And helped himself to a chilled glass of orange juice, to which he drained in a few seconds flat. He then snatched a shrimp from one of the players and began to hastily chomp down on it as his life depended on it. He was now angry, frustrated, hungry, and suspicious. He sat down in a nearby chair to think. 

On one hand, he was still angry about the fact that Nagito was more confusing and hair ripping out interesting than anything. But on the other hand, Hajime was overwhelmed by a new emotion that concerned Nagito. Sympathy. But also anger. Why did Hajime want to sympathize with Nagito? He had waited so long to tell Hajime only a sliver of his past. It didn't seem fair to him. So why now did Hajime want to drop everything thing he was holding and tell Nagito that it was going to be okay? Had he grown to care for Nagito perhaps? 'No...' Hajime screamed mentally. Nagito was nothing to him, it was just a common reaction to something sad. Hajime concluded at that moment that this feeling was not anything out of the ordinary. It was just a feeling. He was angry at Nagito, yeah, that's what it was. 

Suddenly a sound reached Hajime's ears. It was a sort of piano mixed with a violin. It sounded beautiful. Hajime turned his head to see two angels at their instruments playing the song that had already captivated so many. There was a blonde girl who was gracefully playing the violin, her fingers moving like a butterfly delicate wings. And there was a boy with dark hair and glasses, who was not watching his hands dance down the piano, but watching the girl play. 

A sort of power came from that song, it was slow and also calm, but at the same time. It was intense and hard to listen to. Hajime watched as many couples began to make their way to the dance floor. The pairs joined hands and began to take steps and began to twirl together. They all smiled at one another. They made Hajime feel lonely in a way, and as he watched these people dance to the song, he came to realize how lucky they were. 

Love.

Hajime had never been in love. Mainly because he had never had anyone to love. But these people, who had died, some in the most tragic ways. They were smiling and dancing, and they were all in love. 'Only the luckiest can fall in love, Hajime.' Makoto told him that once. As a small child, Hajime didn't understand. But now he did. And he could not help but wonder if he would ever be lucky enough to be loved, or more or less, fall in love. He rolled his eyes at this. He knew that that was a dream that he could never reach. 

"Hajime?" Nagito whispered. Hajime looked up to see Nagito standing above him, his eyes looked nervous, and his cheeks were red. "Do you... um... want to dance?"

Hajime's eyes went quite wide at that. He felt his stomach somersault, and his throat felt like it was closing up. That... certainly came out of the blue. But, he was in no position to refuse the offer, "Um... sure, but... just know that I can't dance for shit."

Nagito gave a small laugh, before taking Hajime's hand from his lap and carefully leading him to the dance floor. Hajime felt like he might have heart failure. Never in his life had he felt so nervous. How was Nagito so damn calm? Hajime gritting his teeth wishing he could be gifted with the gift of calmness at that moment. 

Nagito took the two onto the dance floor. Everyone threw small glances at the two, out of sheer curiosity of how everything was going with the future husbands. Hajime felt like their gazes were like knives, but Nagito ignored them as he lifted Hajime's right hand slightly into the air. He then placed Hajime's left hand on his waist, which earned a squeak from Hajime.

"What are you doing?" Hajime murmured desperately, he was trying not to turn into a tomato. While Nagito looked like he did this every day. 

"That's what everyone else is doing..." Nagito relied as he placed his own hand on Hajime's waist. The burnet had begun to tremble. Nerves were eating away at him, and he found himself wanting to escape this nervous situation. But he had to put his nerves on hold, for he had not expected Nagito to actually move.

Nagito lead Hajime around. The two soon settled in something resembling a pace. Step, slide, move back, and repeat, but switch. Nagito made little to no reaction when Hajime stumbled on his foot for the first waltz. Hajime said an apology with his eyes and then looked down at the ground, being careful not to do it again. But after another minute or two, the burnet found himself not needing to look at his feet. His eyes had found a new target.

He eyed Nagito carefully, taking note of the emotions he showed on his face. He wore something resembling a grin on his face, it was too small to be called a full smile, but it seemed to be real. Nagito's cheeks were pink, and also red. However, his eyes looked ecstatic. They seemed to glow and sparkle with joy. Hajime felt his lips unintentionally push upwards. He had never seen Nagito like that. He looked better when he didn't have a fake smile on his face. Hajime felt the gloved hand squeeze his hand a bit tighter as they continued to dance. And Hajime, was not against the idea to squeeze back. 

Which he did.

"Hey, Nagito?" Hajime whispered, with a tone that was held more happiness than he had held in his whole life. Seeing Nagito look... happy. Was like a drug. Hajime adored it.

"Yeah?"

"I like it when you smile..." Hajime whispered. 

At that moment. The boys had not yet realized how close they were to one another. They had not noticed the many pairs of eyes on them, hell they hadn't even realized that there was not even a single person on the dance floor. All the guests had cleared the way, most likely so they could all receive a clear view of the unfolding events.

Which got much more scandalous in three seconds flat.

For in a single instant Shuichi and Kokichi had dashed onto the dance floor, at top speed. Slamming their hands into the back of their brother with all of their might. They gave quite the push. And yes, you could pretty much imagine what happened next. 

The two older brothers had fallen victim to a forced kiss.


	10. A Drunk First Time

Hajime was sitting in a corner three seconds away from offing himself. Never in his entire life had he experienced something so humiliating as well as stupidly good in his life. Everything was going alright! But Kokichi and Shuichi had to come and ruin it all! Dancing with Nagito was already a big step. But a kiss! 

Actually, one could barely even call it a kiss. It was more of a sloppy coalition with the lips that seemed to radiate disaster and cluelessness. And altho it was only for a millisecond, Hajime had instantly pulled away. Pushing away from Nagito with so much shock and surprise that he fell down and almost took his brother down with him.

But there he was, sitting in that corner still deep in thought about why Nagito had looked so disappointed when Hajime had pulled away. It was maddening. Did Nagito know the kiss was going to happen? Did he plan for it to happen? No... Hajime doubted that he would plan something like that. It was always going to be the little brothers who would plan something like that. But that still could not explain the expression of pure disappointment that Nagito had on his face. Sure Hajime only caught a glimpse of his face before running away, but he could obviously tell that the white-haired boy was disappointed. 

This was confusing. And Hajime suddenly felt the strong desire to take a nap. 

"Is there something wrong?" A voice said. Hajime looked up to see an Angel with grey hair which was short and covered one of their eyes. They wore black gloves and a maid like a uniform. They seemed to be a server. "You look a bit distressed, could I perhaps get you anything to drink?" 

Orange juice seemed too happy for this kind of mood. But the burnet found himself needing something that would put his mind at ease. Or maybe something that would make his worries disappear... and then it occurred to him. Alcohol. Humans drank it all the time, and every time they did they seemed to have a great time. Now Hajime himself had never had any before, but considering he had just lost his first kiss... what was wrong with losing his first drink? "Alcohol..."

"What kind?" The maid said kindly. 

"Anything that will make me happy... or drunk..."

"Then something strong?"

"Yeah, that would be great," Hajime whispered as he placed his head back into his hands. He could feel the maid nod and walk off to get his drink. "This better do the trick..." Hajime muttered out loud, not giving a damn anymore about what the Angels thought about him. He had already sunk below standards. 

...

"Nagi we did it to get you two closer! And you said you wouldn't be mad!"

"Kokichi I was not told what you were gonna force us to kiss!" Nagito half yelled at his little brother, who had tried very hard to convince Nagito that his actions were justified. 

Kokichi continued rambling about how sorry he was, but Nagito only covered his face with his hands and sank into a chair

Why was he so upset about it? Sure he had not expected the kiss, and sure he knew the instant that it happened Hajime would most likely pull away. So why had he wanted more? Was it because he felt something towards Hajime? But even that feeling was small, certainly not big enough to fuel this much desire for a kiss! 

"Do you w-want us to leave you alone?" Shuichi whispered as he placed his hand over Kokichi's mouth to stop his unnecessary rambling. 

"...Yeah...I think that would be for the best," Nagito whispered. Shuichi gave a nod and then took Kokichi by the hand and the two walked off to god knows where leaving Nagito in his usual state of loneliness. 

He leaned back in his chair and look at the table to see a bunch of candies in the middle of it. Nagito rolled his eyes at this. He had always hated the idea of those candies. They seemed to candy one would eat after being rejected to make one feel better. 'Oh, you just got turned down completely? Have a bar of fucking chocolate!' That analogy only made Nagito feel worse as he himself plopped a bar of chocolate into his mouth.

"Eating the rejection candy?" A cool voice said. It was Mukuro. Now normally Nagito would bow to the princess of Hell, but today he really just was not feeling it.

"I guess..." Nagito whispered as he swallowed his sadness and looked up at Mukuro. She was wearing formal wear and she had her arms crossed and a setting glare, and smirk on her face. "Your brother and Shuichi made quite the commotion." 

Nagito stayed quiet. She was making a rhetorical statement, it was not worth it to respond. 

"Hajime is not taking it very well..." Mukuro said as she took a sip of a liquid from her glass that seemed to be fizzy and purple. 

"What do you mean?" Nagito replied instantly, the sudden mention of Hajime's name had brought him great worry. 

"He's decided the best way to clear his mind is to drink until he can't stand up, a stupid decision if you ask me."

Nagito upon hearing that statement lept from his chair and started frantically walking through the groups of angels in search of Hajime. All the Angels eyed him as he passed by, some even placed their hands to their partner's ears to mummer about Nagito. But Nagito paid them no mind, he was used to it after all. 

Nagito whipped his head around frantically, his eyes scanned all around for familiar burnet. If Hajime was drunk... a situation might unfold. However, none of the Angels matched the description that Nagito had of Hajime. There was not a hot-headed mildly attractive Hajime insight. But then a thought crossed Nagito's mind. What if Hajime wasn't standing? This thought made Nagito examine all the tables in the room. But halfway through his search, he turned his head to a corner in the room. And found what he was looking for. 

"Hi, Nagi~," Hajime said in a tone that was so mush mouth and childishly sweet, it was instantly clear that Hajime was drunk. 

Now Nagito himself had never had to deal with someone under the influence of alcohol. Nagito also had never had to deal with Hajime in this sense. He was used to people acting childishly, he had grown up with Kokichi for christ sake. But Hajime was different, he could never bring himself to yell or scold Hajime. 'No, that's not the point here! I need to get him home! Um... how do I get him home?'

This thought had not crossed Nagito's mind yet. Sure he could very easily enter the vortex with Hajime. The problem was getting to the right location. The vortex in truth was a series of twists and turns to new users. Once a person learned the right way of course it was easy to travel through the vortex. But finding new territories in the vortex was a lot harder than it looked. One wrong turn and one could find themselves in a bad situation

'No no! I'll have someone take him back for me! Surely he has some sort of mentor!' Nagito bent down to Hajime, who was having a thumb war with himself. "Hajime?"

"Wha...t?" Hajime said with a giggle as he stuck his tongue out. Nagito felt his cheeks flush. This was going to be difficult. 

"Hajime, you need to go to bed, do you know anyone who could take you-"

"Haha look! It's Byakuya!" The burnet snorted as he lazily pointed his finger out. Nagito turned to see a very long-legged Angel standing alone on the other side of the room. 'That must be someone!' Nagito thought happily. He turned back to Hajime and told him to stand up. "No! No!"

"Hajime, please... I'm not going to carry you!" 

"No! I'm not gonna listen to someone younger than me! And it's my birthday! I can do what I want!" The burnet said as he pushed out his lip in a pouting sense. The word cute seemed to flash across Nagito's brain, but he gave his head a furious shake before he felt a tap on his shoulder.

"It seems the brat has drunk himself close to death..." Byakuya said as he snorted and pushed his glasses up the brim off his nose. 

"Sir! Please, I know I should not be speaking to you but I need-!"

"Haha! Look! A homo!" Nagito turned around to see his future husband standing up. Actually, he was more of wobbling than standing. His legs swayed from side to side as he pointed directly at Byakuya's face.

Byakuya's face went from normal colored to red and angry in a matter of seconds. He took a step towards Hajime and grabbed him silently by the collar of the shirt. Nagito instantly took a step forward, but the blonde superior placed his hand in front of Nagito, daring him to interfere. "What did you say to me?"

"Ya know, I feel if you just accepted how openly gay you are... you would be a lot happier! Am I right~?"

Byakuya glared at Hajime so hard there seemed to be venom in his eyes. Hajime had clearly struck a chord that was not meant to be struck. And Byakuya looked like he desperately wanted to teach him a lesson, but then again, they were in public. "Well, perhaps if you would just have sex with your soon to be husband, you could maybe be a lot happier..." Byakuya whispered dangerously. Before turning curtly on his heal and leaving. 

"You know I will, hey Nagito can you be a boo and pull down your pants-"

"Okay!" Nagito yelped in desperation as he slapped his hand over the burnet's mouth. This was probably the most embarrassing that Nagito had ever had to endure. Hajime had begun to struggle and flail his arms like a toddler, and Nagito was desperately scanning the room. He knew he should not bother the higher-ups, which was considered offensive in his books. But he had placed all his hope on Shuichi. Shuichi was a person that Nagito could get help from, considering that he was, in fact, Hajime's brother. But no matter how many times Nagito looked over the room, the blue-haired emo was nowhere to be seen. Nagito felt his stomach drop several more inches. If he didn't take Hajime home the burnet would probably get himself into so much trouble it would seem comical. So what the hell was he supposed to do?

'Maybe he could spend the night at my place...' As soon as this thought crossed Nagito's mind he immediately slapped himself across the face with his free hand, he felt Hajime laugh from behind his hand. What the hell was he thinking? Hajime had asked him to drop his pants a few seconds ago! 'But he needs to sobber up! And he definitely can't stay here!' Nagito's shoulder Angels had begun their backlash at one another. But he took a deep breath and made his decision. 

"Um, Hajime?" Nagito whispered as he removed his hand from Hajime's mouth. 

"Wha?" The burnet said in a dazed voice. His eyes were sparkling as he looked up at Nagito. The white-haired boy felt a memory resurface when he called Hajime's eyes beautiful. What he saw that day did not compare to what Hajime's eyes looked like at that moment. Nagito's heart had begun to hammer against his chest, and one could probably cook an egg on his cheeks. He could not believe what he was about to say. 

"I'm... I'm going to take you back to my house so you can sleep. You can go in the morning... is that okay?" Nagito said gently. 

"Mmmmm, aren't you gonna have to carry me~? You have tiny arms! Tiny whittle arms-"

"Yes! I can carry you!" Nagito squeaked out as he took Hajime by the wrist and made his way over to the door of hell. Thankfully the majority of people were congregated in the middle parts of the room. As Nagito stepped in front of the door, he gave a still intoxicated Hajime a nod of yes. Hajime then lept into Nagito's outstretched arms. The white-haired boy almost collapsed due to the sudden weight. Now he couldn't say that it was Hajime's weight that was the issue. It was just as the burnet said, Nagito did have tiny arms. "Ok remember you have to hold on-Hajime!"

The drunk boy was barely listening to Nagito. He had begun to preoccupy himself with nuzzling his face into the crook of Nagito's neck. "You smell good..."

Nagito pursed his lips with embarrassment. He could feel the eyes of the party guest bearing into his back. And he only felt them more as he unfolded his great black wings and opened the door. When he took flight into the vortex he instantly felt it's chill, this was a direct vortex to hell. But, he felt very comfortable and warm as Hajime continued to nuzzle his neck. Too warm. Nagito himself had never been cuddled if that was the word to describe what he was experiencing. 

But he felt like Hajime was rubbing happiness into him. Maybe it was because he was touch-deprived? No that couldn't have been it. It was more like... he enjoyed it? But he couldn't enjoy it! Hajime was drunk and Nagito knew that Hajime normally would never willingly do this. But... did that mean he couldn't enjoy it? He felt his stomach stir as he hastily moved his wings and turned invisible corners in the vortex. 

When he felt his feet slam into the Queen's castle floors, he immediately shuddered. He could almost feel the misery of Hell hit his body. But as the soft breaths from Hajime continued to hit his neck, all the misery seemed to fall from him. Nagito began to walk towards the castle's balcony, still carrying Hajime. Altho his mind was ordering him to put the drunk boy down, his body seemed to refuse. And even as he flew to his own tower's balcony, he still carried Hajime.

There were only two rooms in the brother's tower. And Nagito knew if he so much as entered Kokichi's room without permission, he could wake up with a shaved head. So when he entered his room he told Hajime his plan. "Okay... I'm gonna let you sleep here tonight... and I'm gonna sleep on the floor... okay?"

Nagito knew that Hajime was going to resist this idea. So immediately after saying it, he began to try prying Hajime out of his arms. However, this action seemed to put him in a more awkward situation. For the burnet began to cling to Nagito like a small child to his father's leg. "No... I wanna have sex!"

"Hajime stop!" Nagito begged as he continued to push Hajime's arms away from the sides of his neck. To no avail of course. "You're just drunk!"

"I'm as sobber as they can get..." Hajime moaned. "What is it...? Am I ugly?"

"No! Your beautiful..." Nagito whispered that last part. Of course, Hajime was beautiful! Actually, he was more than beautiful. Beautiful was a phrase that was tossed around like a whiffle ball. It was used so much it seemed almost meaningless to Nagito. Hajime was more than beautiful to him.

But sex... no. Nagito was a virgin. And he could bet quite a bit of money that Hajime was too. Now, of course, Nagito knew what sex was, he had been reading Call Me By Your Name for years now. But it seemed like something that needed to be done a few times. And not something you should do with no experience, especially with your drunk soon to be husband. 

"Then why can't we have butt sex?" Hajime slurred in a slightly seductive way, before gently pressing his lips against Nagito's neck. 

Nagito himself was so startled by this unpredicted action that his very knees seemed to give way. He landed on his bed on top of Hajime who had a sly expression on his face, giving off the vibe that he had planned this from the very beginning. For a drunk, he sure was devious. 

However, Hajime did not stop. And after a moment of two, Nagito felt a tongue against his neck. It felt like all his self-resolve was crumbling. As well as his will power. Hajime was pushing buttons that should not ever be pushed. And he was directly hitting the ones that would make Nagito choose sex over putting him to sleep. Nagito had already begun to give in, he was pushing less. 

"Come on Nagito..." Hajime whispered as he removed his mouth from the white-haired boy neck. He locked eyes with a dazed Nagito and whispered out the word that hit the 'We're Gonna Fuck Button' "Please?"

Nagito was not an experienced kisser, but he had enough knowledge to know that he could not act unsure. So he tackled Hajime in a kiss that seemed to radiate more confidence than any action he had ever taken in his life. The kiss was far from perfect. It was definitely sloppy as well as not very eye appealing. But the soul feeling of Hajime's mouth was enough to drive Nagito half insane. 

What he felt was addicting. Hajime tasted of chocolate and alcohol. The two's tounges moved in scenic against one another, fighting for something resembling control of each other. Surprisingly, it was Nagito who won the battle, but because it was a match against a drunk... it probably wasn't something to be proud of. 

Nagito had already removed his gloves and shirt halfway through the kiss, and after a minute or two more, his hands had begun to unbutton Hajime's white shirt with ease. And after Hajime's blazer had been awkwardly removed, Nagito temporarily disconnected from Hajime's lips. Only to attack his neck, sucking and kissing the burnets skin like there was no tomorrow. 

Hajime himself was moaning and groaning almost like it was a sex tape. Except his sounds of pleasure were as real as they could be. Nagito could feel him grip the bedsheets, but that was not his concern. He was too busy giving Hajime hickeys. The burnet certainly had a beautiful chest. It was smooth as well as tan, and Hajime appeared to have a somewhat resemblance to a six-pack. Not a full one. He was only 19 for god's sake. But he defiantly in shape for his age. And as Nagito continued to kiss Hajime's body he felt almost ashamed to be doing this.

So when he came to a temporary stop. Hajime reacted almost instantly. "K-Keep going!" He groaned. 

He hesitated for another moment. This seemed to make Hajime angry. Because after another second of hesitation, Hajime had sat up and pulled off his pants. Nagito turned away in slight embarrassment as he tried not to look at Hajime's naked body. But he soon found himself forced to look at it, because Hajime plopped himself in Nagito's lap, like a child in the mall Santa's lap. 

"Why are you not doing anything?" Hajime whined as he began to run his tongue among Nagito's ear. Nagito jumped as this happened. But he jumped more when he felt a tug at his hair. Hajime pulled his hair down and continued to rub his face against Nagito's neck. Nagito felt his face heat up greatly though when he felt something rub against his stomach. Something very hard and wet... "Are you scared?"

"No... I'm worried more about you... you're still drunk-"

"I'm pretty fuckin' sobber!" Hajime said as he sat up and lazily pointed his finger at Nagito in an accusing sort of way. 

"You're not!'' Nagito whispered as he took Hajime's hand. Hajime's eyes winded at this sudden action. Nagito then pressed his lips gently against Hajime's. In this kiss, there was no tongue. It was more of a real kiss, or maybe a reassurance kiss. The white-haired boy was testing Hajime, if he kissed him back, he would continue. And the other choice was self-explanatory. Nagito preferred this simple kiss, it seemed far more meaningful than just snagging. 

But of course, the best part about that kiss was the fact that Hajime did not pull away. 

Nagito broke the kiss with a dazed look on his face. Hajime had kissed him back. Sure he had already been kissed back by Hajime. But that was snogging. That was a real kiss. At least in Nagito's eyes. They did not break eye contact with one another as Nagito removed his pants. Without a word of exchange, Hajime spread his legs oddly, to an outsider this would probably look very unattractive. But this only made Nagito flush more.

He bent down to Hajime's rear. Which was a little to perfect for an average 19-year-old. The burnet was very hard, as well as wet. Nagito suddenly felt like he was at the intense part of a book. The part was one wrong move could make shit go down. Thankfully, Nagito played the right cards.

He started by wetting his fingers a bit. Or more like a lot. And after taking a deep breath he adjusted himself so he lay slightly next to Hajime, circling his entrance with his two fingers. Hajime immediately tensed up at the sudden contact. It must have been strange for him, but he still gave a stiff nod in Nagito's direction. Too which Nagito responded with by pushing a finger into Hajime. 

It was a bit difficult to move at first. Considering that Hajime had tensed up so much he could perhaps pass as a rock. But after murmuring a few words of reassurance to his 'Partner' Nagito found it much easier to move his finger. And after a little while, he was able to press a second finger in. This earned him a low moan from Hajime. Who was not even trying to conceal his enjoyment. This continued for a little while longer. In that time period, Nagito grew unbelievably hard, and Hajime made noises that most people would consider to be screams rather than moans. 

"H-Hajime?" Nagito asked as he continued to finger Hajime, "Is it alright if I... you know?"

"Aren't you...mmph... s-supposed to... do it... gah! When... you w-want... to?" Hajime gasped out with great difficulty in between trusts. 

'I really am bad at this...' Nagito thought bitterly as he gently removed his finger from Hajime. This earned him a whine, as well as a 'Put it in'. This phrase sounded so desperate as well as lustful, it turned Nagito on just to think it over in his head. 

Nagito placed his forearms next to Hajime's head. He towered over Hajime, and Hajime's seemed to really like that. His eyes were sparkling and he was smirking. Nagito felt his lips tig up at that, he was making the burnet happy, and that was all he needed. 

With his right hand, he pressed the head of his member against Hajime's entrance. This was fucking scary. What if he hurt Hajime? What if he hurt Hajime? The thought almost made him pull away. He could never hurt Hajime.

"Nagito..." Hajime whispered. Nagito looked Hajime in the eye once again. His eyes were so much more clear now, he almost looked sobber. "I'll be fine..." He whispered before he pressed a gentle kiss against the white-haired male's collar bone. It was another reassurance kiss. 

So Nagito took a deep breath and pushed in.

Hajime let out a gasp. One that was weaved with pain as well as pleasure. Nagito's member felt like it was being crushed. Hajime was very tight, as well as wet. Or maybe that was Nagito's pre-come. Normally this feeling would be unpleasant to Nagito, however, considering that it was Hajime. It felt incredible. 

Nagito began to move. His trusts were uninformed, and they had no pattern. But they seemed to be working somehow on Hajime. Who had at first been gasping, but he was quickly transformed into a blubbering moaning mess. His mouth opened and closed like a fish, and his eyes were bludging like an insect. He gripped Nagito's back very tightly, and somehow his hands began to weaving through Nagito's fluffy hair. This action made Nagito shiver, and gasp. Apparently, he had sensitive hair. 

As the two continued their absurd version of sex, Nagito suddenly took notice of Hajime's member. Which had begun to pulse and twitch. Hajime's breathing had also become quick and rapid. And Nagito felt Hajime tighten, even more, making it even more difficult to move. 

This sudden change of pace made Nagito's stomach stir. Almost as if a cramp, or knot had formed in his gut. He felt suddenly like he had been submerged in hot water. He had begun to gasp more than ever, and he felt like he needed to go faster. So to the best of his ability, he began to speed up. Which made Hajime's breath hitch and his grip on Nagito's hair tighten. 

"I-I...! Fuck!" Hajime cried out suddenly. He came all over his stomach. Nagito did as well after a few thrusts. The feeling he felt as he did was indescribable. He felt like he had run a marathon, and he felt the great and sudden urge to fall asleep. He felt like his dick was being burned by what he had let out, but his member had also never felt better.

Nagito slipped out of Hajime with ease, the burnet's tightness seemed to have disappeared almost. Hajime was laying like a rag doll, his arms and legs were limp, and his eyes were fluttering open and closed like a light switch. He looked unbelievably tired. Nagito smiled gently at him as he reached for some tissues. He then proceeded to wipe off the burnet, who said nothing as he did. Even as he cleaned his rear. 

Nagito disposed of the tissues in his bedside trash can. He looked down at Hajime, who was still drifting in and out of sleep. Never had Nagito seen the boy like this, his face was not in a scowl. It seemed almost odd. His normal face creases were missing, and his eyes fluttered gently as his chest rose and fell. 

He was... perfect.

'Sure he can be an ass... but...' Nagito's thought trailed off. For he had felt fingers brush his forearm. The fingers were warm and soft, as well as longing and desperate. Hajime's hand had wrapped around Nagito's wrist, which made him wince a little, but he tried to hide it.

"Nagi?" Hajime murmured without opening his olive eyes.

"Yeah...?"

"Can you cuddle me?" Hajime whispered as he turned over on his side to make his back face Nagito. Implying that he wanted to be held. Now, who would be dumb enough to refuse that? Clearly not Nagito. For he crawled into his bed, getting slightly under the dark covers. He did not need a ton of extra warmth, because the still intoxicated Hajime snuggled up against Nagito's bare chest like a kitten to its mother. 

Nagito felt his cheeks burn and his heart rate quicken. However, Hajime did not seem to notice. For his breathing had finally evened out, and his heart rate had slowed down. He was asleep. In Nagito's arms. He felt like he was high. Never had he been so nervous as well as happy in his whole life. 

But he shouldn't be happy. Because this wasn't real Hajime. 

This was drunk Hajime. A Hajime that was needy, childish, and pushy. Real Hajime was arrogant, selfish, and a complete ass. But, Nagito couldn't help feeling drawn to Hajime. He felt as though Hajime was trying so hard to try and be something greater than himself, which could be complicated considering who he was. And Nagito knew that the next morning he would most likely be shouted at, and he would probably not see Hajime for awhile. 

So why did that mean he could not savor this moment?

Why could he not be close to Hajime at this moment? What was stopping him? Nothing! It was only him contradicting himself. He was going to have to live... before he... ran out of time.

He pulled Hajime closer. He would live at this moment. For he knew he did not have many left. And he knew that not many would be shared with Hajime starting tomorrow. So he would savor today. He would remember every touch every kiss, every step they took in the dance. These moments were precious, and he was not ready to let them go to waste. Not yet. Not ever.

"Goodnight Hajime..." Nagito whispered to the sleeping boy in his arms, he pressed a small kiss on his forehead, before closing his own eyes, "I...love you."


	11. Fall Back

Hajime had awoken even before he had opened his eyes. His brain seemed to be hitting itself with a baseball bat, and his stomach felt awful. Not to mention his rear. However, for another moment or two, he kept his eyes closed. Hoping the longer he shut his eyes the more the pain in his head would ease. However, this only seemed to help him remember the embarrassing and pleasurable events of the previous night.

So he snapped his eyes open, his face immediately settling into a glare. But then the glare went soft as his eyes came into focus.

He had originally thought that he had been wrapped in blankets. He was proven wrong. Hajime found himself snuggled up against Nagito's chest, in a sort of hug if that was the word. Nagito had looped his right arm around Hajime neck, also supporting his head in the process. His left hand rested on the sheets of the space in between the two, which there was little of. The burnet concluded that his hand had originally rested on his cheek, but it must have slid off during the night.

Hajime had his arms around Nagito's waist, which was bare and pale as paper. Hajime felt his eyes focus on Nagito's chest. It was pale and thin. The white-haired male's ribs could easily be seen, but his stomach was still slightly muscled. Nagito's fluffy white hair laid partly on the pillow on which his head was rested on, however, some large chunks stood up slightly.

The burnets sore eyes began to wander to Nagito's face. The instant he saw his face he felt his own face fall.

Nagito's face looked as though it had contorted in the night, to perhaps a terrified expression. But the thing that seemed to baffle Hajime the most was the tear streaks that covered his pale cheeks. Had he perhaps had a nightmare? Hajime's hand had found itself upon Nagito's face. Rubbing his cheek, as if to wipe away the already dried tears. Pity was filling Hajime, as well as curiosity.

The olive eyes then left the younger boy's face. They trailed downwards to Nagito's hand, which had been holding Hajime face in the night. At first, Hajime was only looking lazily at Nagito's hand, but when his eyes caught sight of his wrist, they halted.

Scratches. Slashes. And everything in between covered Nagito's wrist. Altho they seemed to look like nothing to an idiot, they seemed to be like discovering a body to Hajime.

Instantly his hand had left Nagito's cheek. Hajime ran his fingers over Nagito's wrist like it was an investigation. But he was gentle as he examined the boy's skin, like a mother checking a wound. Well, it was a wound. 'This is definitely not something he received from someone else, no one would purposely make cuts so they can be hidden, and especially not cuts as small as these. So that could only mean...' Then it hit him.

Hajime felt his eyes widen considerably as he shot up and tumbled off the bed. He sank his teeth into his lips when his rear made contact with the floor, now normally falling of a bed wouldn't hurt that much. But considering that Hajime had just come to the conclusion that Nagito was self-harming as well as the fact that he had lost his virginity last night. Falling of Nagito's bed hurt a lot.

The curtains that were around Nagito's bed concealed the white-haired boy, so Hajime did not know if his fall had awoken Nagito. But after a moment or two more of restaining a hiss of pain. Hajime decided that Nagito was still sleeping. He suddenly felt so dizzy in the head as well as the stomach. His stomach heaved a very nasty rumble and he felt his head droop drown due to the worsening pain in it.

But after a few deep breathes and some intense-ish stomach punching, Hajime was able to wobbly heave himself to a standing position. The first step he took made him feel like an infant again. But after a few more, he seemed to get used to it. He spotted his shirt on the floor, after rolling his eyes once or twice, he bent down, still clutching his head. And picked his now wrinkled top of the floor.

As he began to pull the sleaves on, he turned and spotted himself in the mirror. Instantly his hands flew up to his neck. His fingers tracing the dark marks that laced his skin, trembling as they did. They weren't painful marks of course, but they certainly weren't ones that Hajime was accustomed to seeing, or wanted to get used to seeing for that matter.

The burnet's stomach was swirling, but no with the sense of being hungover, well partly that. With an emotion that he could not seem to understand. Was it guilt? Pity, anger, sadness... no. It was almost a combination of them all. He felt strangely responsible for what was going on with Nagito. Of course, he knew somewhere in his gut that this was a completely unreasonable thing to think. But where that guilt started, pity overran it more than ever and that pity mixed with the sadness.

Only then did the anger hit. The anger was as unexplainable as the rest of the emotions he felt. But they were all in a horrible mix. Everything Hajime felt at that moment was stirring in a big pot of doom, and what came out of the pot was a feeling that Hajime had once heard of. But never wanted to feel.

Despair.

Wasn't despair something you felt when all hope was lost? That's what it felt like to Hajime. He had tried to figure out Nagito, but when he did, he ended up learning things that threw him into a pit of emotions that he could not get in the slightest. And this discovery that Hajime had made only made his blood boil.

Why would Nagito harm himself? That question seemed to circulate a million times in Hajime's head. He himself was not new to self-harm. One of the burnets first souls that he collected was a young boy who had committed suicide. But why was Nagito doing it? Of course, he had it rough, he was the creation of Junko and was in the same difficult situation as Hajime. 'Or is it something more?' Hajime thought as though everything else did not matter in the slightest.

Was there more to what Nagito was hiding? Of course, there was. Nagito had done unexplainable things. Things that made Hajime feel humiliated and lost. Things that made him sad and angry. Things that made him question everything he had grown to believe about the boy.

He couldn't do it. He couldn't understand. He realized that at that moment. Or maybe he knew it all along. Hajime must have known that Nagito would never be one that he could understand. And when Hajime could not understand. He would make it so he didn't need to. He would remove himself from the situation.

And that's just what he did.

"Where are you going?" Nagito whispered as he pulled aside the curtains on his bed and saw the brunet pulling on the shoes he had worn the previous night. Nagito began to pull on clothes that did not match, but he could care less. When Hajime gave no response, however, Nagito continued. "I think we should talk Hajime..."

"We are not going to talk," Hajime spat, with so much forced hatred in his voice it was almost unbearable to hear. Nagito felt his chest tighten at these words. Instantly he knew that Hajime was fully aware of what happened the previous night, and he began to presume that he had seen something that he shouldn't have seen.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have-"

"Can you stop fucking apologizing?" Hajime yelled. His voice rang out raspy and crackly. It seemed to be soaked in emotion. Emotions like pain, and anger.

"Sorry..." Nagito murmured as he clutched his t-shirt with trembling fingers. "Are you... leaving?"

Hajime didn't answer. He only stood and made a quick pace towards the door. But as he closed his hand around the cold doorknob he felt something take his hand. "Let go Nagito."

"No, we have to talk about this-" Nagito pleaded.

"There is nothing to talk about! What the hell do you want me to say? Thanks for the sex?" The burnet furiously shouted. His heart was pounding against his chest and his brain seemed to be screaming stop it. But he couldn't do it anymore. "I'm leaving! Now let me go!"

"No!"

"Yes!" Hajime screamed, and with all the strength he had left. He yanked his hand from Nagito's. Nagito stumbled backward. His eyes were watery and his brow was pinched into a hurt gaze. Hajime's stomach lurched when he saw that expression, and it only took another look to make him empty his stomach on the floor.

"Hajime!" Nagito cried in worry as he began to try and step over the vomit. He placed his hand on the burnets back, but his hand was slapped away. Tears were pouring from Hajime's olive eyes. They spilled onto his shirt and landed on the floor. Never in his life had he felt so angry, so sad, and so much despair.

"Don't touch me!" He screamed, his voice was so broken and ragged it was pitiful. "Stay away from me!"

...

"Is this the pride-filled Hajime I've come to know?" Izuru said as he sat down lazily on Hajime's window. His long black hair blew in the wind, and he was deeply smirking. It was a nasty thing to be smirking about, but one could not deny that it was slightly funny.

Hajime had flown back to heaven, throwing up in the vortex, and beating his wings so poorly he looked like a child. Tears had slipped from his eyes like criminals in a justice system, and his head hurt from crying, being drunk, and hurting Nagito. But the second he got back to his room, he put it in worse shape than the modern world.

He threw his books around on the floor and tore the blankets of his bed like a child. His reason for this tantrum was quite dumb, but also understandable. He needed to take his anger out on something, anything. Anything that wasn't Nagito. Even if it was a bookshelf or even a flower vase. He had to release his anger. But no matter how many times he kicked his books across his room, he only felt more sadness consume him. As well as anger.

He had officially lost it.

"Leave me alone!" Hajime sneered at Izuru. The judger very presence was pissing the boy off. He wanted to have his failing tantrum without an audience. Izuru only snickered at this.

"No, I don't think I will. If I do, I might end up letting you tear this room into a ribbon shop. And would we want that?"

"You already know what the hell happened! Do you want to piss me off more and make me tell you what happened?" Hajime demanded as he seized hold of his pillow. Which surprisingly had remained quite untouched.

"No, I already trying to erase your moans from my head..." Izuru said slyly. Hajime went so red in the face at that comment that he lanched his pillow at Izuru with all his might. However, the Judger only lazily extended his hand, stopping the pillow in mid-air like it was a gust of air. "You should try throwing it harder next time, maybe you should aim it more at Nagito?"

He then snapped his fingers and the pillow went soaring out of the window like a recently freed bird.

"Ugh!" Hajime yelled in anguish. The burnet slammed his fist into the wall. The walls seemed to shudder at the impact. Hajime felt his knees bend, and when they touched the ground he allowed himself to crumble. The boy let out a gasp, he had not realized that he had been holding his breath to not let out a cry of agony.

"What are you thinking Hajime?" Izuru asked.

"I can't see him anymore..."

"You can't or you won't?" Izuru murmured in a bored tone. This clearly was not the most appealing situation to him, but Hajime didn't care anymore. He couldn't stand it anymore. Every time he closed his eyes he saw Nagito's face, his broken face. But why should he care? Because Nagito cared about him? And why should he feel guilty?

It wasn't Hajime's fault that Nagito had it so hard! It wasn't his fault that he had been created! It wasn't his fault that purgatory failed! So why did he have to feel like it was? Why did he want to help Nagito? How could he feel so much hate towards Nagito, but then want to drop everything to help him?

It wasn't fair. To either of them, but it was the way things were. Hajime felt his heartthrob, suddenly recalling what Byakuya had told him a few nights previously. 'You and that boy have entered a cycle, of you picking a fight with him, then hurting him in some way, and then you give some dumb apologies. And he accepts them because he could never refuse you.' Cycle...how does one end a cycle. You have to break it. Hajime would pick a fight with Nagito? Well, you can't pick a fight with someone when you don't see them.

"You think cutting ties with him and only seeing him when you need too will fix your problems?" Izuru snorted.

"Get out of my head!" Hajime hollered. He found himself on his feet, trying to look strong and confident with his decision. But he only looked small as he continued to tremble with fury and sadness.

"You could always make up with him, there's no need to isolate yourself from him-"

"Shut up! Shut up! Can you just shut up? Can't you see? It won't matter what I do to him! He would just accept me! I could be evil to him! He wouldn't care! He shouldn't care!"

"Hajime-"

"Just leave me alone!" Hajime screamed. His eyes were burning and his head was throbbing. Everything seemed to hurt. He didn't want to stop seeing Nagito. Nagito... even though he brought Hajime sadness and anger, he was still... just him. Nagito was more of a person than Hajime could ever be. He was kind, and understanding, and loving, but also funny, and odd. Nagito was... Nagito.

And that was why Hajime had to fall back from him.

"Very well..." Izuru whispered. He turned on his heel and made his way to the window, that he had previously perched on. His dark hair swished behind him as he walked making him look strong, and only making Hajime look weaker. He stood on the window sill, the gentle breeze of the night blowing against him. He looked back at Hajime who had collapsed on his bed and had once again begun to cry. The red-eyed male opened his mouth for a moment. But then closed it.

For he had nothing left to say to Hajime.

...

"Kyoko?" Byakuya said as he knocked on the lilac haired woman's door on the same night that Hajime had made his decision.

"Come in," Kyoko called to the door, which swung open as soon as she gave the okay. Byakuya was still wearing his formal wear, and he was carrying a mass amount of files and documents. He looked quite annoyed to be working at this late hour. "How have the two new one's been?"

"Eren and Mikasa seemed to be more fond of one another than the job," Byakuya said with an eye roll as he passed the papers to Kyoko as she smiled at his remark.

"And Toko?"

"She and Komaru are settling down finally, but Toko's still up for any battle. How about you? Are you and our gracious King finally going to have a child of your own? At this rate, his younger sister is going to beat you to it."

"Very funny..." Kyoko said as a way to dodge the question. She and Makoto had decided long ago that a child could wait until Purgatory was restored.

"May I ask why you requested files on Junko's creations?" Byakuya asked curiously as he made his way towards the window in The Queen's office.

"I'm onto something. Shuichi and I have been working on a sort of case." Kyoko said as she began to shift through the papers.

"For who?" The blonde asked.

Kyoko bit her lip. As though trying to for the right words to say to Byakuya. She wasn't certain about where her reasoning stood. But she had some fairly good evidence that might point to her uncovering an answer.

"I believe that Junko might have cursed Nagito."


	12. The Burnet Screws Up (Again)

January.

February.

March.

Three months passed like logs floating down a stream. Silent, and painfully boring as well as strangely peaceful. Nagito took the hint almost instantly. It was quite obvious to him that Hajime did not want to see him. And he couldn't really blame him.

Nagito would feel chills on his spine when he recalled the burnet's expression that morning. So hurt, and so angry. He told Nagito to stay away from him. That was a reasonable thing to ask, so Nagito obliged. The white-haired boy collected souls by himself, or more or less, left the group. One because Hajime didn't leave for quite some time, and when he did finally leave, Nagito felt that Kokichi and Shuichi needed all the alone time they could get.

Soul collection had always been a lonely job and a sad one for that matter. Nagito was relieved to know that Shuichi had been covering Kokichi's eye's when the death occurred. But Nagito almost missed protecting his little brother.

But he always smiled at the idea Shuichi was there for Kokichi... or more the act of Shuichi being there.

...

On the first day of April, Hajime found himself flying through the tops of Tokyo with a glare on his face and a clenched fist. He had taken every soul collection chart that he could hold that day. Which did not play in his favor because he felt like the halo on his head was going to explode. But if it got him out of running into Shuichi, it would be worth it.

Hajime had busied himself during those three months by learning how to push his anger into his pillow-less bed and removing all thoughts of Nagito from his mind. He had avoided Shuichi with all his power, for every time he saw his younger brother, the blue-haired boy would bring up the boy who Hajime was desperately trying to remove from his mind. Hajime also tried his best to avoid practically everyone. He ate alone in his room and collected souls alone.

Which creat anger and more punches for his pillow-less bed.

However, at that moment he was grumbling to himself about how he didn't have a pillow and other things that didn't matter. When he remembered why he was even flying in the first place. A young girl was going to pass in her sleep, and she would only be a few years old. Hajime sighed at the idea of it. There were people in the world who had to be the bearer of bad news, while he and many others spent their immortal lifespans collecting the souls of the dead. Children's souls, old souls, and everything in between.

Hajime when he was younger, always found himself questioning, did this person really have to die? Did they really deserve what came to them? It was such a big question for such an innocent mind. So he was always supposed to forget about the question.

The burnet landed in the local park, where he soon saw the soul of a girl spinning around cluelessly. The girl had oddly braided green hair and a blue themed outfit, she was kicking the air like a ninja and was laughing to herself as she did so. Her body lay in the park's tunnel, and it seemed like the girl had not noticed yet that she had died.

Hajime landed quietly near the girl's soul and gave her a small tap on her should. In a way to get her attention, he then quickly pulled the Halo off his head... but he did not expect a punch to the jaw. "Back off! You degenerate male!"

"What the hell?" Hajime yelled as he stumbled backward clutching his redded jaw.

"How dare you put your hands on a little girl! You should be ashamed of yourself!" The girl said as she stamped her foot. Hajime was angry and slightly aghast. He had never had problems like this when collecting souls.

"I was trying to get your attention!" The burnet barked back at the girl, who had crossed her arms and turned her back on Hajime in a pouty way. "And who are you calling a degenerate-"

"You! Yes, you!" The girl said as she jabbed Hajime's chest with great annoyance. She spoke to Hajime like he was, in fact, younger than her, which made Hajime angry. Why the hell was he getting bossed around and insulted by a seven-year-old?

"Stop that!" Hajime snapped at the girl as he pushed her transparent hand away from his sore chest. "Come on, you have to go!"

"Go where? Why should I go anywhere with you?"

"Because you are literally dead! And I don't know if you missed the wings, but I'm an angel and I need to take you to the afterlife-!"

"I'm not going anywhere with you! And how dare you say I'm dead! I'm perfectly a...alive..." Hajime had pointed at the park's tunnel, and the little girl finally caught sight of her frail limp body. As she trailed off, her already translucent face lost every little bit of color it still had, and she crumbled to the ground in half an instant. Her hands trembled as she grasped hold of her hair, they then trailed onto her face. Hajime could tell she was desperately trying to convince herself that she was not dead. "N-No... I-I can't be...dead... I'm alive! I f-feel alive!"

The burnet felt the urge to make a smartass statement to the girl, who had made his already pained ass hurt more. But he bit his tongue seeing how upset the girl actually was. Sure he had had people who had a hard time excepting death, but never a full out mental breakdown. Which was something that Hajime was not very equipped to deal with because he had an awful stance with his own emotions at that moment. So the only thing he could get out was a very lousy sounding. "Hey... I know that this is-"

"I need to see someone!" The girl cried out as her head shot up with so much force Hajime could hear her neck crack. "My friend!"

"Huh...?" Hajime said. Now that was something he hadn't expected. When soul collectors were assigned souls, they were always given a small bit of information about what lives the people lived. And this girl, who's name was Tenko, did not have any friends. She had a strong dislike to boys due to their immaturity level, which was high considering that all the boys she knew were seven. And she didn't have any friends. Hajime felt another urge to comment on her statement, but he decided to say something different. "We have to go... I'm sorry..."

"No! Please, sir! I-I need to see her one more time!" Tenko wailed as she bowed her head as low as she could get it. Hajime groaned, he had wanted to get back to his fortress of solitude earlier. However, there was a dead seven-year-old in front of him pleading to let her see her friend for the last time. So he really was in no position to say no.

"Alright! Fine! But were leaving as soon as you see her! And you do know that she won't be able to see you-!"

"Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" Tenko cried with sadness as well as joy. She launched herself onto Hajime, hugging his neck with such intensity that he felt his own neck groan and crack. "Come on degenerate! Her house is this way!"

'How on earth did I end up in this situation? I'm fucking pissed right now why am I bending over backward for this girl! She's just like Kokichi! Bratty and annoying! The day that purple-haired brat learns how to stop being a seven-year-old is the day that I have a kid with... No! No! Damnit! Stop!-'

"Hey, degenerate male! Why is your face so angry all of a sudden?" Tenko said nosily as she continued to walk, or float down the street.

"None of your damn business! And can you stop calling me a degenerate male?" Hajime snapped.

"Fine! I'll just call you Sir!" Tenko said as though that was the burnet's new name. However, Hajime decided to let it slide, he had already begun to remove the thoughts of a particular white-haired male from his brain. Tenko tilted her head curiously at the strange faces Hajime was making. "Are you okay Sir?"

"I'm fine!" Hajime hissed. He hated what this girl was doing, she was practically a direct mix of the two reaper brothers. One part of her made Hajime want to tear his ears from his head, while the other part of her made Hajime want to tear out his ears and his eyes.

The girl eyed Hajime suspiciously, but then shrugged and began to pick up the pace after the two passed a small house. After walking past a few more houses, Tenko came to halt in front of a medium-sized red house. Her face instantly lit up, and she began to jump with excitement. "This is her house! Himiko's house!"

Tenko then sprinted through the gate and quickly made her way around the house's corner. The burnet rolled his eyes, this seemed pointless in his eyes. This Himiko would not be able to see Tenko, so why the hell was she so excited? 'No point in me trying to figure it out.' Hajime thought lazily as he slowly walked around the corner. But he was met with a less than happy Tenko.

The green-haired girl stood frozen in her tracks, staring painfully at the scene in front of her. Two girls seemed to be playing with one another. One had red hair and was rather short, while the other had darker skin and white hair. The two seemed to be having a good time, playing dolls, and laughing with one another.

Tenko, however, began to shake. Her lip trembled and her eyes seemed to pool with tears instantly. Hajime instantly could tell that there was someone there who Tenko disliked. Was it the white-haired girl? "Tenko...?"

"Does she even know?" Tenko whispered savagely and painfully. The very question set Hajime a step back. Of course, she didn't, nobody would find out until much later. Normally Hajime would expect Tenko to be worried about her parents, but who was this Himiko to Tenko? And why was she so important?

"No... no ones gonna know until tomorrow..." Hajime answered honestly. There was really no point in lying to her, it would only be more painful that way.

Tenko let out a loud sniffle, and let herself drop to the ground. "I don't want to be dead... I have to see Himiko... I have to protect her..." She began to rock back and forth, like a child trying to comfort itself. Hajime felt completely helpless. It was always Shuichi who comforted souls, not Hajime. So he awkwardly placed his hand on Tenko's shaking back. He could feel no heartbeat or breath. She was absolutely dead, he knew crying about it wasn't going to help. But he also knew that crying was practically the only thing that she could do.

Crying was a thing humans did when they felt pain or hopelessness. Hajime cried. Everyone cried. People who didn't cry were sometimes called weak, or even strong. Crying was so painful, but as well as relieving. So Hajime let Tenko have her cry. Altho it was short, he could tell that she needed it. When she had stopped, she stood like a robot. And walked away from her Himiko with tear-stained eyes and a trembling straight face.

"I'm ready to go now..." Tenko whispered. "I want to go. I can't look at her anymore."

"Why not?"

"Angie doesn't care about her. I know it. I told her. But she doesn't listen. Well... it doesn't matter anymore! Please take me away Sir..." Tenko whispered as she turned her head away from Hajime. Clearly not wanting him to see her in this weakened state.

"Are you angry because you failed to protect her?" Hajime said, he himself not really knowing where it came from. "Or because you failed to even spend enough time with her?"

Tenko was silent.

"Why are you, angry Sir? Because you can't comprehend your own feelings? Or because your beginning to figure out something that you shouldn't have?"

Now it was Hajime's turn to freeze. How did she know? Did she read him? Because if she did she had read him like a picture book. He felt himself shiver. Of course, he couldn't comprehend his own feelings, that was why he had ended up secluding himself from the group, and the world. And had he also found out things about Nagito that he shouldn't have? Of course! He wasn't supposed to know about Nagito harming himself! No one was supposed to! But he still did! Was it because of luck? Or fate? Or did he find out because of his own selfish desire?

"Please just place your finger on the Halo..." Hajime whispered in a tone like the dead. Tenko gave him one last look, before pressing her pale finger against the soul collection box.

'Why should I be concerned over a seven-year-old analogy of me?' Hajime thought as he spread his perfect wings and took to the vortex. Leaving a small pile of perfect white feathers behind him.

...

"Nagito. A word if you could," Mukuro hissed as she looked down at the crumbled Nagito. It appeared that Kaito and Maki had gotten to the boy. His nose was twisted at an odd angle, and his under-eye was blackened. The Reapers Maria and Jojo instantly stepped away from Nagito and began to make their way far away from Mukuro. From both fear and knowing that they should be interfering.

"O-Of course... I'm sorry about-!"

"No need to apologize, you've been beaten to a pulp! Here have a healer," Mukuro said in a semi kind like tone, as she passed an oddly colored pill to Nagito. Who earned an eyebrow raise from Mukuro after swallowing it like it was nothing.

The two made their way to a sort of back alleyway. Reapers within 200 meters of the area had instantly shattered. Junko's creations were of course very easy to shame and ridicule, especially if they didn't care. But no Reaper dared to mess with the format Queen of Hell.

"You will attend an information meeting tomorrow, Mikan is going to explain to you and Hajime," Nagito went noticeably stiff at the mention of the burnets name. However, Mukuro continued pretending not to notice. "The options you two have for conceiving a child, and do not make it a joke."

"I would never."

"I pray you won't," Mukuro warned. Nagito clutched his ring. Mukuro was a very intimidating person, especially when she was temporarily freed from the grip of Junko's chains. The black-haired princess's eyes trailed down to Nagito's hand. "I see you still have that ring..."

"What?" Nagito asked with curiosity. Mukuro knew about the ring? How long had he had it?

"Well, you were so young, so it's only fair to assume you wouldn't know," Mukuro said matter o factly. As of that was the answer to Nagito's question.

"Know what? Can you please tell me?" The white-haired boy half begged, not really caring anymore about the view Mukuro had on him. It was already a flawed view anyway. But Nagito had always wondered about how he got the ring. He knew for a fact that it certainly wasn't a gift from Junko.

"It's a long story..." Mukuro said with a smirk.

"I have a lot of time on my hands."

...

On the morning of the second day of April, Hajime was informed that he would have to attend a meeting. And the instant he found out he took to the sky. Hajime ran, or flew around the world, literally, being chased by his mentor as he tried to run from the meeting. Byakuya had finally snatched the boy when he found him terribly hiding on the Eiffel Tower. And dragged him by the ear to the Island. Nagito, of course, had gotten there first, and Hajime almost spoke to him to tell him to stop giggling. 

Nagito was wearing his usual outfit, with his hood up as usual. This may have slightly triggered the memory of Hajime running his fingers through that soft hair. This caused Hajime to go bright pink and move his chair away from Nagito. Thankfully Mikan had nervously entered the room with shaky legs and a lopsided smile.

"H-Hello, m-my name is M-Mikan. I am t-the nurse o-o-of hell, and I-I will b-be explaining t-the two plans that y-you two have f-f-for having a ch-child..." Mikan said shakily to Hajime and Nagito. Who had separated their chairs so far apart, they looked like they were on opposite sides of the Island that was nowhere.

"Thank you, Mikan," Nagito said kindly, giving her a small bow. Hajime silently rolled his eyes at this. This was not something one should be saying thank you for. This was probably going to be one of the most awkward things to ever happen to everyone that was in that room. In school, the sex talk had always been somewhat funny. This was you're getting pregnant like this talk, with another option sprinkled in. Nothing to be kind about.

"A-Alright, a-as the two of you kn-know. You t-two must h-have a-a-a child b-by the end of th-this year. A-And there a-a-are only t-two options for y-you two to p-pick together," Mikan stuttered out, she seemed to put a lot of importance on the together part from Hajime's view. Frankly, Hajime just wanted the choice that got him away from Nagito. "T-The f-f-f-first choice would be pregnancy. I-I would h-ha-have t-t-to administer a drug t-t-to the person w-who wishes t-to carry t-the child. T-Then y-you two would n-need to have in-intercourse... and... w-w-well... y-yes..."

'Nope! No way! Not fucking happening!' Hajime screamed mentally. He felt his stomach jump to his throat, and the strong, but also nonexistent urge to vomit came up. The day that Hajime would willing have sex with Nagito again, was a day that he both slightly wanted, and also the day that Hajime would cut his wings off. Have a baby? A thing that grows in your own stomach...?

Gross.

"O-Of course, t-there is a-a-a second option..." Mikan said clearly noticing Hajime's reaction to the first statement. "B-But t-this one would n-not help y-you two bond very w-well, and i-it can be tricky... t-the second option w-would be f-feather m-magic..."

Feather magic was something that was considered dumb and impractical considering that Angels and Reapers could hardly stand each other. However, since the two species needed some sort of magic other than their Halo's and Scythes. Feather Magic was created. It was used when an Angel and a Reaper wanted to do something that their normal powers alone could not do. Things like to create deals or even some objects. Things like children, however, were very complicated to make. The pair would have to write down everything that the baby would have to be and have, miss one thing and a disaster.

Nagito and Hajime had indeed been created by Feather magic. But they were created by rulers of the two territories, and Junko and Makoto had absolutely created many things before them by themselves! "... of c-c-course, I d-do believe that the two of you w-w-will be able t-to pull i-it off! W-With a-assistance if y-you need it! B-But of c-c-course y-you have two c-c-choices and-Oh my!"

Mikan seemed to have jumped five feet into the air. A loud blaring noise had begun to go off. It was clearly a pager of some sort, meaning that there was something that needed to be attended to by her. And direct padge from Junko was not something to ignore. "I-I'm sorry! I-I must be going! P-Please m-m-make y-y-your edition t-t-t-together! Eek!"

In Hajime's eyes, Mikan seemed to have a skill for tripping over nothing. After she had made a sloppy scramble to the door of hell and departed with her magnificent black wings. Hajime and Nagito found themselves alone together. In dead and complete silence.

Hajime did not look to his right. He only continued to look at his lap, which was like looking at a lap. Which was why he almost jumped out of his skin when Nagito spoke. "Option two?"

"Ah! What? Oh... um... yeah... whatever..." Hajime said nervously, he had almost forgotten the beautiful sound of Nagito's voice. Especially the sound of it when he was talking to Hajime and Hajime alone. 'Stop thinking about stupid stuff like that!'

"Alright," Nagito said simply, before standing up and making his way to hell's door.

"Wait hold the fuck up!" Hajime cried. Springing to his own feet almost as quickly as Nagito did his own. He marched up to Nagito, who had already unfolded his wings and had his hand on the doorknob. "Where are you going?"

"We made the decision..." Nagito said in an airy but still sad sounding tone. Hajime could tell that he was not exactly happy about leaving. "And... you did tell me to stay away from you..."

Hajime clenched his jaw. "W-Well... why the hell are you listening to me? What authority do I have over you? Huh?" The burnet stammered out, sounding somewhat like Mikan. But there was something in his words. Anger. It seemed to be Hajime's new favorite and constant emotion to Nagito.

"None, but you wanted me to stay away so that's what I'm doing!" Nagito hissed. He felt himself growing a bit angry. But not at Hajime, he could never be mad at him. But because he desperately was wishing to lay down, for his head had begun to pound. But this pounding was far more than his normal headaches, this pound was making him sway, and every time he blinked it took far too long for his eyes to readjust to the light. His whole body seemed to hurt. He needed to get out of there. He didn't want to have another tick, nor did he want Hajime to see him like this.

"Why the hell are you getting mad at me?" Hajime demand feeling as though this sudden change in tone was being directed at him.

"You're always mad at me!"

"I'm not right now!"

"Don't lie to me!" Nagito shouted he had to shout because he could barely hear himself over the thumping in his head. "You look mad right now!"

"Because you're avoiding me!" Hajime barked back.

"You avoided me for three months!"

"I-I-"

"No, forget it! I have to go!" Nagito cried as he threw open the door to hell. Instantly a gust of cold air hit his skin, but he ignored the urge to shiver. For the young Reaper wasted no time leaping into the vortex but he barely got a wing beat in for he suddenly felt heavier than ever. Hajime had leaped onto Nagito's back, carefully avoiding the wings but still the shock was enough.

The two felt like they had begun to fall. Like they were tumbling out of control. Nagito shut his eyes, his head was about to split, and his body felt like it was giving in. He wanted to give in. He wanted to slip away. The pain was too much. He wanted to fall away...

Hajime felt like he was slipping off. No! He couldn't slip! 'Fly! God, please! Fly!' He screamed at himself. He felt his wings unfold as soon as he felt light hit his eyes, as well as a blue scenery. He looked around. He was hovering in the blue sky, clearly, over an ocean of sorts, he could see a dock, thousands of feet below him.

But he did not see Nagito hovering with him.

"N-Nagito?" Hajime cried out. Panic had soaked his voice. What if Nagito was still tumbling through the vortex? He looked to his left, then his right! Then up! And then...down. "Nagito!"

The white-haired boy was tumbling. Crumbling. But most importantly, falling. His body was rolling around as he continued to fall. His jacket had slipped off and his wings were letting feather fall from them like snow in December. His arms flailed like he was asleep and falling. He was out. And he was going to hit the dock.

Hajime's wings moved before Hajime had even fully registered what was happening. He was screaming, calling Nagito's name begging for him to fly. He pumped his wings so hard he felt like the bones in them were cracking. But he didn't care! He couldn't care! He had to catch him! He was going to get hurt!

"Nagito! Please wake up! Nagito!" Hajime shrieked as Nagito only fell further towards the earth. His back was facing the ground, and his face was facing Hajime. His arms flailed in front of him like a rag doll. His grey eyes could not be seen, and he was too far below Hajime.

Which was why he hit the dock.

The wood below him shattered and snapped. But the majority of the snapping sounds came from Nagito's wings. Which shattered in an instant. Every single joint... broken. Every single muscle... torn. Blood poured from the wounds, and Nagito's chest movements went shallow. And the ocean below the dock went red with the blood of a broken-winged Reaper.

Hajime had really done it this time.


	13. The Cursed Boy

"N-Nagito...?" Hajime whispered as he landed on the shattering dock. The white bottoms of his sneakers had instantly gone red. Hajime's whole body was shaking, and his stomach felt like it had soured in a second. He felt dilutional and dizzy, as well as sick. "W-Why... a-are you h-h-hurt?"

The white-haired boy didn't respond. His chest was hardly expanding and his limbs had gone slack. Nagito's eyes were closed and his face had no expression, for he had already fainted before he hit the ground.

"H-Hey... Nagito?" Hajime said, his voice breaking at every syllable. This wasn't real, it was a dream. An awful dream. Nagito wasn't hurt, Nagito was okay. The burnet's hands had begun to trail over Nagito's pale cheeks. Which had gone a gray color due to shock and continued blood loss. 'It's just a bad dream...' Hajime thought over and over again. Hajime desperately shook Nagito's body. He lifted the crumbled boy into his arms, begging for him to open his eyes.

But he didn't.

"Get up! Wake up goddammit!" Hajime screamed. The blood from Nagito's body fell on Hajime's lap, that he had been placed on, and the great black wings that used to symbolize who Nagito was. Remained on the dock like extra broken weight. Feathers were missing from their places and the bones appeared to have sliced through the skin of the wings. They had no shape anymore. The only thing on the wings that looked like it had remained was the ugly scars that Junko had carved onto her creations skin. "Open your fucking eyes!"

He did, but hardly.

Nagito could only open his right eye, but even that was difficult. For his eye twitched and seemed to beg to shut itself again. However, the white-haired boy continued to squint, searching for the burnet's face. When he finally found it, his lips parted and cracked into something resembling a smile.

"Are... you... hurt?" Nagito forced out. Hajime's jaw felt like dislocating as it dropped open. This was no dream, it was reality, and it was a nightmare. Nagito looked like he was lying on his death bed, but he was still making sure Hajime was happy. That he was okay.

"Why? Why the hell are you asking me that! Your wings-!"

"It's okay... " Nagito whispered. His smile remaining on his face as his one eye fluttered shut. "I'm... okay..."

Water began to fall on Hajime's hair. But it was not rainwater that fell on the pale boy's cheeks, but tears. Hajime knew he had no right to cry, this was all his fault after all. He had been awful to Nagito. Everything was his fault. Suddenly even the fall of Purgatory was his fault, it had to be. If Hajime never existed, Nagito's wings might have been spared. He would live, of course, nothing could kill an immortal being. But a Reaper without wings was destined to be treated like a baby bird that can't fly.

"No! No! No!" Hajime screamed as he clutched Nagito's limp, pale, blood deprived body. As he swooped into the sky. The burnets own wings were beating so sloppily and pitifully, the rain that clashed against his face seemed to mock him for it. Laughing at the once-proud Angel. "No! Your wings are okay! You're going to be okay! It's going to be okay!" The burnet screeched as his tears began to mix with the rainwater. "It's going to... be... okay!"

But he would come to know that... it was not going to be okay.

...

The King and Queen of heaven had decided that they would try to enjoy a cup of tea that day in the garden. The two sat in mild conversation, about nothing in particular, and drank their herbal tea with soft piano playing in the background. "I don't think we really have any personal business to talk about, considering our entire life practically revolves around the boys..." Kyoko said, as a sort of ice breaker. If that was the phrase to use.

"Yeah..." Makoto said with a chuckle. He then set down his teacup and struck up a conversation that he had been meaning to talk to his wife about. "Should I be trying with Hajime?"

"When you do try with him he's only more of a brat."

"Kyoko..." Makoto murmured.

"I'm sorry Makoto," Kyoko whispered as her gloved hands gripped the teacup. "I know that's not fair for me to say. I barely speak to the boy myself, Shuichi always was easier to deal with."

"Hajime's confused..."

"He's more than confused, actually I think he's more angry and resentful than confused per say..." Kyoko inquired thoughtfully as she placed her cup down.

"I know he never wanted this, but I think that he's angrier about the fact that Nagito is so puzzling to him."

"He's always wanted to know why things happened... remember when he would always ask those silly questions?" Kyoko added with a small laugh.

"'Why does an octagon have to have eight sides? Why can't it have seven?'" Makoto quoted as he suppressed a laugh. "How old was he when he stopped asking those questions?"

"When he found out about... " Kyoko trailed off. And Makoto did not press the question more, he quickly changed the topic not letting the talk die.

"Kokichi and Shuichi seem to be getting along quite well!"

"Yes, they have been getting along very well... " Kyoko said while beaming. The King and Queen had actually taken quite a liking to the younger brother's relationship. They had seen the two bouncing around the castle playing with one another. "I've never seen Shuichi smile like that-"

"Kyoko! Makoto!" The two turned their head to the gardens pathway and instantly spotted Byakuya. He was running at top speed towards the two, a look a worry and fear on his face. Makoto and Kyoko instantly rose to their feet, knowing that whatever Byakuya was about to say, it wasn't going to be good. "There's been an accident!"

"An accident!" Makoto questioned in a worried tone as he ran with his wife closer to Byakuya. "What do you mean Byakuya-?"

"Hajime, and Nagito! They got into a fight! And Nagito flew away! Something happened in the Vortex and," Byakuya was struggling to get his words out. His breathing was shallow and his voice was rough, he had clearly just received the news. "And... Nagito must have fainted because he did not fly as he... fell..."

In an instant Makoto seemed to understand, he knew what happened, and he knew it wasn't good. In the instant that he figured it out his wings snapped open and his Halo summoned above his brown hair. White feathers fluttered down to the floor, mixing with Kyoko's as well as Byakuya's.

"Where are they Byakuya?" Kyoko said fiercely as she summoned her weapon, out of the pure anger crossing through her veins. She seemed to have also figured something out. Nobody knew it yet but the very fact that Nagito had fainted, was the final piece of evidence for Kyoko. She had her evidence, and it was time to convict. The lilac haired girl clutched her small dagger in her hand and imagined wrapping her hands around a certain individual's neck for what they had done.

"Hajime should be heading to Mikan's," Byakuya whispered, as he adjusted his glasses.

"Then let's go," Makoto whispered.

...

Mikan's scream made almost half the afterlife jump out of their skins. Though to be fair to her Mikan certainly did not expect to receive a broken wings Reaper on any occasion. Wing breakage was almost unheard of because all beings with wings were trained on how to use them from the moment they grew in. So her scream was slightly justified.

"Oh my goodness!" She cried after her monster scream, as she ran forward to Hajime. Who was still cradling Nagito in his arms. Blood was dripping from Nagito's wings, as well as his arms, and some blood was even seeping through the boy's hood. Nagito appeared to have gotten worse from the very trip. "W-What ha-happened?"

"...Fainted... f-fell..." Hajime whispered still almost in an insane state. But he was not insane enough to not notice the change in Mikan's expression. Her face went from worried to knowing. From pale to gray and lumpy. Her hands seemed to tremble at a faster rate than ever, as she brought them temporarily to cover her mouth.

"A-April..." She stuttered.

"What?" Hajime demanded, snapping out of his dazed state instantly in this now ridiculously" suspicious situation. "What does anything have to do with-!"

"The b-bed! P-Please p-p-put him t-there!" Mikan cried as she regained her professional composer. "O-On his stomach! P-Please t-t-try and o-open his w-wings! I-I need t-t-t-to sterilize them! A-And wrap th-them!"

Hajime wanted to know more about what Mikan had said, but there were far more important things. He dashed over to the medical bed, which had practically never been used. So this was clearly a big thing. Hajime as gently and as quickly as he could, laid the white-haired boy down on the sheets. His back faced Hajime, his jacket was bloodied and his wings looked horrific.

Bent and crooked. Bones extruding from the joints, and blood ozonizing from places that Hajime didn't even know existed. Mikan came rushing over to Nagito, carrying needles, bandages, googles, scalpels, scissors, and fluid bags.

"P-Please cut h-his jacket o-off, I-I n-n-need to see t-the base of h-his wings!" Normally Mikan would have done this herself, but Nagito had practically lost half the blood in his body. And she needed to prep, she was about to perform a small operation on the boy. "I-I'm going to s-s-stop the bl-bleeding for now, he m-must be concise when w-w-we make other decisions!"

Hajime was barely listening to what Mikan was saying anymore. For he was cutting of Nagito's jacket and undershirt at a rapid rate. With trembling hands and burning eyes. When Nagito's clothes were finally removed, one could see damage on his back, and it was bad.

His ribs were clearly broken, due to the mass amounts of bruising all over his skin. His normally pale back was sheet white, but also yellow and purple due to the bruises. But the base of his wings was wretched. The black feather base was almost completely split in half. Normally when wings were unfolded they connected at the back of the body and muscles in the wings base allowed them to move and beat and support the person when flying. But considering the way Nagito fell, his wings base was split almost down the middle.

Hajime, when he caught sight of the split flesh, had to run to the trash can. His vomit came up tasting so rotten and wretched. He felt like he was vomiting his every emotion. He clutched the trash can as he continued to spew, tears fell from his eyes as the images of Nagito continued to flash in his brain. However his racing thoughts were interrupted by a loud yelp that came from across the room, and it certainly wasn't from Mikan...

"Eek! N-Nagito! P-P-Please d-d-don't try and m-move!" Hajime's head shot up instantly to see a heartbreaking scene. Nagito was twitching and gasping, his toes were curling and constricting with pain as Mikan continued to place medical devices in the boy. The burnet could hear his ragged breathing from across the room, as well as his pitiful whimpering. "D-D-Don't try to t-t-t-tuck them!"

Hajime felt his legs move without permission, he instantly traveled over to Nagito, with concerned and wide eyes. Which began to sting when he saw Nagito's hand, which was clutching the bedsheets with so much intensity. That the boy's knuckles had gone white.

"H-Hajime!" Mikan said as she began to sew the spilt in Nagito's wing base. Which made Nagito's groan.

"What the fuck?" Hajime yelled. "Can't you see your fucking hurting him?"

"I-I know! B-B-But w-we d-d-don't have t-time to place h-him under a-a-anything! S-So, please! T-T-Try and keep h-h-him calm!" Mikan stuttered out as she continued to gently, and also loosely sew the split in Nagito's wing base together.

Hajime was frozen in his body. What the hell could he do? It was his fault that Nagito was in this state! It would be like a murderer comforting his victim's dead body! Besides, it seemed the every time Hajime opened his mouth something bad would happen to the white-haired boy. And if he tried to do anything physical (Which he was better at apparently) something bad would happen.

But even though all of this was true, Hajime could not stop himself from placing his hand over Nagito's.

It was unbearable to him to see those blood deprived knuckles. Clutching to those bedsheets like it was the only thing he had left to hold too. But what made Hajime fidget, was the fact that the instant his skin came into contact with Nagito's, the white-haired boy instantly grabbed his hand back.

And Hajime deep down knew why, but at that moment, he could not realize why.

...

Nagito's mini operation was as quick but unbearable. Nagito could feel the needles pierce his skin, loosely sewing it back together. As if they could ever be fixed again in the first place. That was the only thought that swam through Nagito's existed brain as Mikan carefully slipped an extra-strong sleeping pill into his mouth. She knew that his head was swimming, her's was too, but the brain could not think when one was asleep. So he would have to rest.

Hajime left the room after Nagito's iron grip on his hand had gone slack. Actually, he was more dragged out. Kokichi the second after he had gotten Hajime into the hall began to punch, kick, and scratch every inch of skin he could touch on Hajime. Words could not describe his anger at Hajime. Angry was not a describer for him anymore. And Shuichi did not come to his older brother's aid, he too was beyond angry.

"You good for nothing piece of shit!" Kokichi screamed as he drop kicked the brunet with so much force it made Hajime gasp and sputter. "His wings! His fucking wings! Maybe I should rip off yours and... and..."

Kokichi began to trail off, pure terror had taken over his previous angry tone. Hajime looked up to see him stumbling back against the wall, Shuichi with him. Hajime looked forward, and he himself instantly sprang up in terror.

Queen Junko was walking down the hall. Her long black wings extended and shown off like they were the greatest things in the world. She was also spinning her scythe around in her long painted fingers like it was a toothpick. Her long peach ponytails swayed and bounced with her every step and her face wore a look of pure amusement.

Which Hajime desperately wanted to smack off.

Mukuro was walking behind her, looking small and pitiful. Her expression was crossed between anger as well as worry. Did she know something-? "Hey! Hey! You with the spiky hair! Come on!"

Junko's voice was so sickenly sweet, as well as generic. It made Hajime want to vomit. His throat felt like he had swallowed a tube of glue and his palms were suddenly drenched with nervous sweat. "W-What do y-you mean?"

"You too Kokichi, we are going somewhere," Mukuro said as she avoided eye contact with the two boys. Her voice was down sounding as well as depressed, and Hajime could not help but feel a sense of remorse for her. But something was definitely wrong, so he wasn't so sure that feeling remorse was the best thing.

Hajime, however, attempted to swallow his nerves and took a step forward. Or more limped forward, considering that he had been rightfully injured by Kokichi. Kokichi followed him, still trembling like a kitten in the presence of Junko, but rightfully so. This was the witch that had carved up his wings. Shuichi looked like he wanted to say something, to protest not being able to attend this meeting, but he knew he'd dare not interfere.

The four walked through the halls of the heath tower, taking a short cut into the palace of hell. They soon found themselves in the throne room, which seemed to radiate despair. Junko was humming a sort of tune under her breath, Mukuro was walking so quietly that not even her footsteps could be heard. And Kokichi was doing the same except he was shaking. The burnet almost wanted to see if the boy was okay, but he knew that would be a stupid idea. Considering that he had just been punched by him. But Hajime still wanted to comfort the boy, and he almost did. If Junko didn't interfere. "Kokichi! Why don't 'cha un-tuck you wings? I want to see how much they've grown! I haven't seen my little creations in so long..."

Kokichi looked like he'd rather walk on hot coals, but unfortunately, he was in no position to refuse. "Wow, look at them! Still so tiny!" Junko said with a twisted giggle. "And these scars... Kokichi... why are they covered-?"

"Junko!" Makoto yelled from the other side of the hall. Kyoko and Byakuya stood by his side, with burning looks of furry on their faces.

"Hey ya!" Junko cried happily, she then threw up a peace sign like it was some sort of family reunion.

"You look quite happy considering the situation that we're all in..." Kyoko whispered in a dead-serious tone. Which Junko ignored like it was nothing.

"Gotta stay positive Kitty!"

Mukuro looked like she was contemplating suicide. Not only was she being embarrassed, but she knew that they were in trouble. Nagito was lying on a hospital bed and he and Hajime were supposed to have a child! 'Kyoko's has definitely figured it out...' Mukuro thought miserably, even thinking of it herself caused her sadness.

"How about we cut the crap and just get to the point?" Byakuya snapped. Hajime flinched at his tone, the blond was certainly daring that day. Using that sort of tone in the presence of the Royals? It was bold.

"Nagito has been injured... " Makoto said with a tinge of sadness and anger on his tongue. "Hajime... is Mikan available to discuss his condition?"

"N-No... " Hajime whispered. He felt quite nervous, as well as pressured. He had not spoken to Makoto in many months, and he could easily tell that Makoto was disappointed in him. "No, she's not-"

"Hajime tell me something," Kyoko interrupted. Hajime turned to see her expression, almost stumbling at it. She radiated pure knowledge as well as strength, he knew that he could not dare defy her at that moment. "Did Nagito allow himself to fall?"

"Huh? Um, n-no he fainted-"

"Passed out?"

"Y-Yes," Hajime whispered, feeling quite small.

"Did he look like he was in pain before he passed out?" Kyoko hissed. Her gaze had left Hajime's cowering face and had made its way onto Junko's. Who was smirking deviously, her aura was clouded black around her.

"W-Well, he was clutching his head-"

"Junko enlighten me..." Kyoko said, taking a step forward towards the Queen of Hell. Not a bit of hesitation in her step. "Has Nagito always had headaches? Specifically, one's that might induce him to faint?"

"This would be the first..." Junko purred back. Her tongue curling like it was nothing, and her poker face unchanging. "But he started to have headaches when he was young..."

"How young would you say?" Kyoko snapped challengingly. She took a large step forward, her purple heal clicking against the black marble floor.

"Oh, maybe around age... eight?"

"And tell me this, wasn't that around the age that you savagely cut his wings?"

"Oh I wouldn't call it savage... more of making everyone know what is mine... and yes... it was around that time... " She whispered. Her smirk only growing wider and her eyes had begun to shine with lust like this intimidation was some sort of turn on for her.

"And Kokichi... who was awake when you woke up from the wing cutting?"

"It was Nagito..." Kokichi whispered.

"Now do tell me Junko..." Kyoko whispered as she took one final step towards the ruler of Hell. Her nose practically touched Junko's perfect one. Junko only seemed to be enjoying it. Hajime was agast, why the hell was Junko being questioned? What did all of this have to do with anything? But he knew the second the words left Kyoko's mouth. He however almost gasped when he heard them.

"... Why did you curse Nagito?"

"Well, Kitty..." Junko whispered, her smirk still on her face. "You said no tricks when creating the brat... but you didn't say I couldn't touch him when he got... older."

Silence.

Cold dead silence rage through the throne room like a gong. A curse? Nagito? No! That couldn't be true! Junko was playing! Joking! She was a wicked woman, but she would never go that far! Espessacally when she knew that she would just be thrown in the dungeons. So why did sound like she wasn't lying? Why did she sound like she was telling the truth?

"What does this curse entail?" Kyoko whispered, her tone unchanging. She had expected this, now she just needed Junko to tell her what the curse actually was.

"Well, in simple terms, at midnight on Nagito's 19th birthday... his brains gonna go in the fryer!" Junko exclaimed like it was some sort of big event she had planned.

"What!" Kokichi screamed. His voice was splitting and cracking like eggs.

"Ever wonder why your Nagi's head always hurt? Ever wonder why sometimes he would be taking pills like there was tomorrow? Ever wonder why he tried to push everyone away? Well, it's because the curse had been slowly, but unnoticeably, shrinking his brain. And as he got older the headaches got worse because his very brian is killing itself! So when that special hour comes, his brain, well more specifically, his ability to talk, walk, fly, well he probably doesn't have that anymore anyways. Will all go bye-bye! And all that will be left of him is a shell, oh he'll be alive of course, honestly... that's the best part of the deal..."

"No... No that's not true! Your lying!" Hajime screamed like a child. Knowing that somehow, altho it was crazy and wicked. It all made sense. Everything she said could explain why Nagito was the was. Pushing people away, headaches, the pills. It was all lined up! But it couldn't be! It just couldn't be! What Junko was describing was a fate worse than death. Nagito would be alive, but he wouldn't be. It was too awful to be real! "You're a fucking liar!"

"She's not..." Mukuro whispered. Her own voice was grave and true. "She's telling the truth. I'm sorry..."

Kokichi fell to his knees, gasping and clutching his chest. Tear's were cascading from his purple eyes, falling on the marble, and echoing across the room. Kyoko took a step back and clenched her fist. Makoto lowered his head, silent tears ran down his cheeks, The King of Heaven was indeed crying. Byakuya drew in a silent breath, which felt like inhaling lava. Mukuro felt her eyes sting, with regret mostly. She had tried to stop her sister, she had begged her not to do it. But she was nothing but a powerless princess, and nothing more.

Hajime's mouth was open, and his kneecaps were begging for him to give in and let himself fall. His body was shaking and cold, chills crawled up his spinal cord like spiders. His empty stomach was begging to vomit once more. But the boy was mainly bewildered. "W-Why are you all crying? It's only April 2! W-We have time! W-W-We can remove the curse-!"

"Shut up.", Kokichi whispered through his sobs. "Are you stupid? Curses can never be reversed! Never! Don't you see it? He's gonna be gone! Nagi's gonna die..."

Junko burst into maniacal laughter. Which sounded like sadistic nails on a chalkboard. Scrapping against everyone's eardrums. "You should see your faces! Do you feel it? Well, do you? This feeling of defeat! Hopelessness! Or should I call it to despair?"

Hajime let out a yell, and then he began to charge. He was running on pure anger, like a mad bull. The boy didn't even have a weapon, he was just running. Doing anything to take his anger out on something. And considering that Junko had cursed his future husband, she looked like a great target. He almost made contact with her actually, if she had not gotten to him first.

The handle of her great black scythe sent the boy flying to her right, and when he hit the ground, his nose made an awful cracking sound. "Hajime!" Makoto screamed, running over to his creation.

"Restrain her!" Byakuya hollered. In that instant, his three right-hand soldiers sprang from their hiding places in the hall and tackled Junko to the ground. In his original battle, Angel Toko had her trusty scissors at the throat of the former Queen's neck. The new Angel's had equipped themselves with swords and odd-looking gear. One Angel was tall, and the other was female and dark-haired, but they clearly meant business when they both stood on top of Junko's body.

"Restrained, sir!" The tall Angel called.

"The Dungeons, if you lose her, your head will be used to throw at her!" Byakuya barked at his people, who nodded and began to drag her out. She had begun to cackel and wheeze. "Is this what it feels like? It's so beautiful-!"

The doors were slammed shut.

...

"C-Can I get you a-a-a drink, N-Nagito?" Mikan whispered to the boy. He had woken that very same day, but he could not sit up, and he could barely even stay awake. His body was screaming for rest, but he needed to stay awake, he had something to do.

"N-No, I need to be alone please, Mikan..." Nagito whispered as he began to twist the black ring on his finger around and around. Mikan gave a shaky nod, she knew she needed to leave him alone, but she was so worried. But she still saw herself out of her office for a drink.

Nagito, with much effort, yanked the ring of his finger. He began to run his finger's over the cheap material. The paint was chipping and the ring looked almost a million years old, but it was the most precious thing in the world to Nagito. Which was why he needed to put it to use. He reached behind his head, and after a moment of two of pain, he pulled one of the few feathers left on his wings off. And he then gently pressed it against the ring and began the recording.

"May this will be given to Hajime..."

...

The beings in the hall were as silent as the tomb and as cold and dead as a body. Dread and guilt and sadness had consumed the air. Hajime was sitting in a corner, his head in his hands, and his whole body shaking. Kokichi was sobbing into Shuichi's chest, the blue-haired boy had been allowed into the room because Kokichi needed him more than anyone. Hajime, however, had no one to cry on, not that he deserved anyone anyways.

Mukuro, Byakuya, Kyoko, and Makoto were discussing something quietly. Or more arguing about something, perhaps what their plan was for the upcoming and set tragedy. They all had been forced to accept it, they were going to lose Nagito. Maybe not his life, but the Nagito they had all known. And they would soon be left with a porcelain doll of Nagito.

Hajime didn't want it to be true. No one did, but it was. It was a new reality, one that could never be captured or changed. Which only made it hurt more.

The adults had stopped talking, and they all wore the same looks of dread on their faces. They had clearly made a decision, that was not very nice.

"What we are about to say may make you angry, but please understand," Kyoko said, her voice sticky with pain and hopelessness. "This is the best and practically the only option."

"What do you mean?" Kokichi sniffled. Makoto drew a breath, unable to look Kokichi and Hajime in the eyes.

"We have decided to end Nagito's life at midnight on April 28th."


	14. The Boy Who Could Not Fly

"The Knife of Despair. It was crafted from the bones of the first Reaper King, and cursed by the first Angel King. The knife was to be used, for one thing, permanently erasing souls of the dead. So they shall never be reborn again. In the millions of years of its existence, it has never once been used. But it has the word of Despair in its name for a reason. The only one who can eliminate the victim is the one that the victim loves most. Anyone else... and the weapon is nothing more than a stick," Byakuya finished with a deep sigh. It certainly was a knife of despair. 

"The person who can use the knife must be the one the victim loves most..." Kyoko said, her tone bitter and sour. 

Kokichi let out a stifled wail into Shuichi's shoulder. Makoto turned his eyes away from the velvet box that rested in his hand. Byakuya rolled up the piece of paper he had just read and shoved it messily in his pocket. For it did not deserve to be treated with kindness. 

The King of Heaven was holding The Knife of Despair's box like it was some sort of diseased child. It felt light, but also like a bolder. Makoto knew that he should not open the box, for he knew if the children were to see it, the situation would become unbearable. But they needed to know something. Makoto swallowed a wad in his throat, and placed the knife on a nearby table, before making his way over to the still weeping Kokichi.

Quite whispers were exchanged between the King and the purple-haired reaper. After a moment or two, Kokichi pressed his tiny face back into Shuichi's shoulder, and the blue-haired boy took his leave. Cradling Kokichi like a baby bird he had found abandoned. 

The four adults made their way into a clump and began to discuss. They would sometimes throw the occasional glance at Hajime. Who was pressed up against a pillar, and was holding an ice pack to his broken nose. He felt hollow, like an empty moldy tree log. However he knew that he could not say that this was a dream, he had a broken nose and a broken Nagito to prove it. 

Why hadn't he told him? Why did he hide it from him? But what would have Hajime even said? Would he deny it? Probably. It would seem to cruel, unnaturally cruel. It would have been too much to bear, so why did he feel betrayed for not knowing? What would he do if he just woke up and realized that Nagito had lost the ability to do anything? What could Nagito do? Nothing, and he knew that. Had he just accepted that he was going to lose it all? But who would want to? 

Was it because he thought no one would care?

"Hajime," Mukuro whispered. The burnet looked up. The adults all stood in front of him, wearing the same grim expression on their faces. But they all also looked like they had no idea what to say or do. "It has been confirmed,"

"What?" 

"Kokichi has told us, that the one Nagito loves most is you..." Kyoko said as she averted her eyes from Hajime's. His stomach went numb, and his brain felt like it had been whacked. How? How could Nagito love him? He was horrible to him... he hurt him... he avoided him. So why him?

"No... no..." Hajime whispered, he felt like he was being crushed. "He doesn't... he can't!"

No one spoke.

"Hajime, I know that this is hard-" Makoto began to say. But Hajime had completely lost it.

"What the fuck do you have to do Makoto? Huh? Do you have to kill him? No! I do! Actually no! I won't! I can't hurt him anymore!" Hajime screamed as he leaped to his feet. His body trembling all over, and his eyes had gone red from holding in tears. 

He would not do it. If Nagito did love him, it would destroy Hajime to know that he had killed the person that had loved him. Hajime was already breaking down knowing that he had destroyed Nagito's wings, next his very life? Who the hell could do that? And would he have to say what he was doing? Nagito didn't know that they all knew, would he have to surprise him? What if he struggled? Would he have to be pinned down and murdered by his love?

"Hajime, we'll only hurt him more if he is kept alive," Makoto said gently as if that was supposed to help the burnet. 

"No! I won't kill him!" Hajime hollered, as he spun on his heel and ran from the room. He ignored the calls from the people behind him, he was only focused on running away. Runaway from it all. Like he always did. 

...

He ran and ran, he slammed into multiple Reapers during his run. They all snickered when he fell to the floor. Their laughs seemed to terrorize the boy, for, in their twisted faces, he saw Nagito. He didn't want to, but every time he opened his eyes, he saw Nagito. The boy's face was following him like a ghost, even though Nagito was alive. His pale face, cheeks, and his grey eyes were everywhere. Staring and laughing at Hajime. Calling him a coward, and wicked. 

'No! No! No stop! Please! Stop! I didn't mean to hurt you-!' But the boy's thoughts were interrupted by him slamming into a door, which opened at his contact. Mikan jumped so high at the sudden sound that she flew a little. 

"Oh my goodness! Hajime! Y-Your n-n-n-nose!" Mikan exclaimed as she dropped everything she was doing and ran forward to Hajime. "P-Please sit-down! I-I-I'll get some healers!" 

But Hajime did not sit down as Mikan clumsily walked back to her desk. His eyes had found themselves glued to a certain someone. Nagito's back was facing Hajime, and he was clearly awake because of how much his wings were twitching and jerking. If you could even still call them wings. His wings had been wrapped in many layers of bandages that had been secured with an infinite amount of medical tape. However, no matter how much there was, blood had still found its way through. Nagito's wings had been elevated by an armrest that seemed to hang from the ceiling, most likely to reduce the blood flow to his shattered wings. 

"..." Hajime had opened his mouth a few times after a second or two of starring at Nagito. But his throat was as dry as sandpaper and he had nothing to offer in words of comfort. So he closed his mouth and swallowed the healer he was given. 

"N-Now, N-Nagito... would y-you like to b-b-b-be alone while I d-discuss...?" Mikan stuttered out as she made her way back over to Nagito. 

"No... it's okay..." Nagito whispered, his voice gravely and rough. His tone sounded cold and dead. Clearly, the presumably bad news had already begun to be delivered. "It's only fair... that he hear..."

Mikan's swallow could be heard from across the room, she looked like she was in agony. And when she began to speak, her voice sounded like it had been wrapped in thorns. "A-A-As you know, w-wing injuries... a-a-are extremely difficult t-t-to fix. E-Especially damage sustained to the b-b-b-base of the wings. And, N-Nagito... y-y-your wing base has... p-p-practically been split d-d-down to the s-spine..."

Nagito was silent. And so was Hajime. This was turning into something that seemed like a plot in a book. What could this possibly be leading to? What was this stuttering mess of a nurse going to suggest? And what would Nagito decide to do? What could he do? 

"I know.", Nagito whispered. Of course, he knew that he could practically feel it. His body felt like it was burning, but not with heat, but with pain and shame. How had this happened? Why did this have to happen? Did life hate him so much that he couldn't even spend his last days flying? Apparently yes.

"Nagito, with y-y-your current, um, s-s-state of m-mind, and n-now this..." Mikan whispered as she began to shake. Violently. Silent tears had made their way through her long eyelashes, and they had begun to drip on the floor. She was heartbroken, Nagito was the kindest boy that she had ever known. Why did the best always have to go? She had tried for years to find a way to try and remove the curse, but nothing worked. And when Nagito was only 12, she remembered him going to her and telling her that he was okay with it... that he didn't mind the idea, of losing it all. "I-I think, i-i-it would b-b-b-be best... if w-we could relieve y-you of s-s-some p-pain."

Hajime's lungs constricted. What the hell could she mean by 'Relieve'? 

"What are you saying ?" Hajime demanded. His temper was beginning to rise in his throat. Choking him along with his sorrow.

"I-I-It m-m-may be b-b-best... i-if I were t-t-to r-remove... w-what is l-l-left of N-Nagito's wings..." Mikan whispered, before letting out a shudder and beginning to silently break down.

The world seemed to freeze at that moment.

Suddenly the air was like lava in the lungs. And suddenly all the blood that used to pump through Hajime's body halted in its tracks. Going as hard as pencil lead, making Hajime's body freeze. The burnet could almost feel his stomach drop down to his tose. And his throat felt like it was being sealed with superglue. 

Cut his wings off?

"I-It would b-b-b-be a p-painless s-s-surgery... someone c-could hold y-y-your hand... and k-k-k-keep you comforted..." Mikan gasped in between the sobs that she was desperately trying to suppress. "Y-Your feathers w-w-will still... p-possess s-s-some magic..."

"No!" Hajime yelled. The words slipping past his lips like soured milk. Cut off his wings? There was a limit to the insanity that Hajime could take. Having broken wings was one level of terrible, but having one's wings severed from their very backs. It was a fate to a being that could fly that seemed worse than death. Not being able to fly, not being able to feel the wind against one's face as they swooped through the clouds. The feeling of power and freedom that one felt... to have that ripped away, and never be allowed to have it back. That was worse than any broken wing. "No! Cut them off? Leaving them on would put less strain on the mind then chopping them clean off-!"

"I'll do it."

Hajime felt his lungs fill with sand. He was joking, right? He couldn't actually be inclined to allow his wings to be cut off! Right? "Nagito s-stop it... the p-pain has gone to your head-!"

"And that's why..." Nagito whispered as his whole body tensed, perhaps in the effort to stop his broken wings from continuing to twitch. Oh, how Hajime whispered that he could see Nagito's face at that moment. Did he look scared? Sad? Angry? Pained? "If some of the pain can be... taken away..."

"Nagito no!" Hajime cried leaping forward, almost stretching out his hand to try and grab Nagito's shoulder and attempt to shake some sense into him. But his arm was seized in mid-air by a short purple haired boy. Who's face was as pale and dead as the dark side of the moon. 

"...then I'll take that option..." Nagito finished, finally letting himself curl into something resembling a ball. But moving so he would not move his wings. "It hurts Hajime... it really... really... hurts..."

Hajime's teeth dug deep into his bottom lip. Slicing through the caped skin with ease. He felt his bottom lids twitch and jerk, burning for they were once again on the verge of tears. The boy could feel his whole face twisting into some contorted expression. One that probably looked so full of despair and sadness that it could be a poster. The olive eyes had made their way onto Nagito's back once again. They starred at those blood-soaked bandages and the bends in the bones. At the twitches and jerks. The jolts of pain Nagito's body would give when he accidentally moved his wings. 

It was all Hajime's fault.

"Leave..." Kokichi hissed to Hajime. With a tone that resembled dry ice. His word burning Hajime, knowing fully that he deserved it. And Kokichi was right. He should leave. So he pulled himself from Kokichi's grasp and flew out the door.

He ran down the twisting halls of the medical tower. Passing his now hideous reflection in the windows of the building. Each face he saw in the mirror was ugly, with red eyes and gray skin. Each with its own bone-chilling statement and laugh. 'You're a failure.' 'Worthless boy.' 'What happened to the cocky angel?' 'Couldn't break the cycle eh?' 'What about that Nagito?' 'Ruined his wings didn't you?'

'If you hadn't been born he wouldn't have been cursed!'

'If you had found him before you may have been able to save him!'

'But you couldn't even do that... and now he's lying on his death bed... about to have his wings-!'

"I know!" Hajime screeched as he slammed his fist into the window. Shattering the glass, his fist, and the face in the mirror. But the voice was still there... whispering and echoing in his ear... and as it faded he almost heard another voice. One that sounded so painfully familiar...

'Are you okay, Hajime?' 

"No..." Hajime whispered to the broken glass shards on the floor. "No, I'm not..."

'Why?'

"Because... your gonna die Nagito..." Hajime said insanely as he looked at the now-empty window frames. "And they're gonna try and make me kill you..."

...

The only thing that Nagito felt was the pinch of a numbing needle that was placed in his shattered wing base. He squeezed his brother's hand a little bit after it was removed, but that was perhaps just a reflex. But he felt the medicine take effect in seconds. His whole body seemed to go numb and he felt himself go slack. Even the pounding in his head seemed to go dull. For the first time since the age of eight, he almost felt normal. 

But then it came back to him. That the only reason he felt so great at that moment was that he had received a drug to numb the pain. The pain of having the one thing semi-normal about himself removed. He felt like someone was running their fingernails across his wing base. And as minutes upon minutes passed like old people in public places. He felt like he was losing weight. 

Weight on his back. It was like the left side of his spine was so incredibly free all of a sudden. But it was too free. And soon the 'freedom' came to his right-wing, and he felt suddenly like he weighed as much as a chestnut, and he felt cold air against the open wounds on his back. 

Kokichi's grip on Nagito's hand was cutting off his circulation. Nagito's eyes closed in pain as he caught sight of his little brother's face. Which was tear-stained and red. As well as scrunched up and broken. Why had he stayed for the surgery? He already looked like he was on the point of collapse. So why would he put himself through real-life mental torture?

Then it hit him as Mikan was stitching up his now wingless back. They had found out. Hajime had sounded raged, and he had a broken nose? Kokichi had already been crying. And it seemed only fitting that Junko would finally admit to what she had done. She didn't care about losing her title, for that too was a taste of despair that she so hungered to see. 

'So that's it, huh?' He thought to himself, as he tried to press his head further into his pillow. 'It's out... and if I'm thinking right... they've probably already decided what to do...' He felt the corners of his lips tug downwards at the following thought he had. 'That would be hard for him...' Nagito thought sympathetically. 

"A-A-All d-d-done..." Mikan whispered as she placed down her tools, as well as her bandages. As she pulled off her gloves she had to turn around for a moment, to recompose herself. Kokichi too had to turn around. The two tried to hide it, but Nagito could easily tell. He knew. He seemed to always know.

He knew that his once great wings lay on a small rolling table that would soon be rolled out of the tower to perhaps be burned, or maybe thrown into the garbage pit. Mikan then circled the bed, clutching a small bundle of black feathers that she had removed from Nagito's former wings. Like he could do much with those. She placed the feathers on his bedside table. Avoiding to look into Nagito's eyes. 

Shuichi had entered the room by this time, carefully collecting Kokichi in his arms and placing a hand on Nagito's before he began to make his way swiftly to the door. "Shuichi...?" Nagito called softly to the blue-haired boy.

"Y-Yes?" Shuichi stuttered out with great difficultly. 

"Could you maybe call Hajime?" At that sentence, the white-haired boy heard Kokichi sniffle a remark into Shuichi's shoulder. A nasty one too. But Nagito ignored it, he knew Kokichi was very upset. 

"Y-Yeah... of c-course..." Shuichi whispered before leaving the room. 

The door reopened and closed a few times after that, mainly from people rolling Nagito's wings out. And after an hour or so, Hajime did not show up. But then he did. Nagito could instantly feel the air around the room go ten times more stress filled.

"Hey..." Nagito whispered.

"Why did you call me here Nagito!" Hajime demanded in a desperate-sounding tone. "I'm the reason your lying in that bed! So why?"

Nagito was silent. Why did he ask for Hajime to come? Why did he not want to be alone? Or perhaps maybe have Kokichi remain? "I don't really know..." Nagito responded. 

"That's not an answer!"

"Well... maybe... I just want someone who doesn't care," Nagito murmured. He felt Hajime's startle at his remark. Even though to Nagito it was painfully true. "If I had someone like Kokichi stay... he would drive himself insane with making sure I wasn't in pain. I can't have someone like him around me like this... so I called you."

Hajime clenched his fist. This was certainly a new thing for him, the being trash-talked by Nagito part of it. Normally when he was talked down he would retaliate with something rude back. But this was Nagito. The person who had just told him that he didn't care about him. And in a very assertive way too.

What the hell was he gonna say? Or do? He didn't have a clue. His brain was already soaked from everything he had discovered and done that day. So what the hell could he possibly say that would ever make sense. The only thing he could think of was something he had read in a book once. And it was absolutely humiliating and embarrassing. Hajime went back and forth with his brain as he considered his options. He could either walk out or be a decent person to the person he had just injured and hurt. 

Needless to say, he chose the second option. 

The burnet took a stride or two forward to the bed where Nagito lay, his back still to him. Hajime walked around the bed and looked down at Nagito. Who's surprised expression clearly showed that he thought that Hajime was going to leave after his remark. Hajime moved past that quickly as he reached his hands under Nagito's arms, and slightly hoisted him in the air before picking up his legs as well. He ignored Nagito's surprised squeaks as he kicked off his shoes and sat down on the bed, placing Nagito's body so he would not be touching his back. And so Nagito would be resting in Hajime's lap, with his head on Hajime's shoulder.

"What are you-?"

"I do care you know," Hajime spat. His tone sounding angry, and his face furiously red. "I'm not a heartless emotionless bastard."

Nagito didn't respond, he was too stunned by the position he was in. His forehead was touching Hajime's long tanned neck. He could feel the burnets fast-paced heartbeat, and he could almost hear his stomach growling for food. 'He must not have eaten...' Nagito thought. He removed his hand from his own bandage wrapped chest and placed it on Hajime's. He felt Hajime's heart rate accelerate at that. 

"Why are you-?"

"Life is precious Hajime... to mortals it's not something you should ever waste..." Nagito said in a wise old man sounding tone. "You have so much life left in you... you're so lucky..."

"A-Are you mad?" Hajime stuttered as his blush began to spread to ears. 

"No..." Nagito responded. As he lifted his head off Hajime neck so he could see eye to eye with Hajime. "You have pretty eyes..." He whispered before pressing his lips against Hajime's. 

It was a selfish kiss. Well... aren't all kisses selfish? Aren't all acts of showing love and affection selfish? Well if they were Nagito would trade anything to be more selfishly in love with Hajime. And act on his selfish desires every single moment of the day. He wanted to touch him, kiss him, he selfishly wanted to be loved by Hajime. 

But one's selfishness could only last a little while. Because Nagito ended the kiss as soon as he started it. Well, he did start the kiss with dryer eyes. 

"N-Nagito?" Hajime cried as he brought his hands up instantly to try and wipe away Nagito's downpouring tears. 

"Hey, Hajime? C-Can I tell you a secret?" Nagito whispered through all the snot and tears. He didn't wait for Hajime's answer, for he pressed his forehead into the crook of Hajime's neck, and spoke. "I'm scared... I'm really scared..."

Hajime could feel the cracks in his heart growing deeper with each word Nagito spoke. The boy's wet tears were pouring onto his shirt, a shirt that was soaked with blood, sweat, and tears. Of course, he was scared, who wouldn't be?

"You don't have to be afraid... I'll be here..." Hajime whispered as he pulled Nagito in. Careful not to touch his back, but also to make sure that he was in Hajime's arms. There was nothing that Hajime could do. He was as powerless as a cow in a slaughterhouse. And as a cow, he could either comfort and be with the cow that was going to go first. Or he could let that cow suffer alone.

And a small spark in Hajime's heart was desperate for holding onto and being there for Nagito. It was a spark that Hajime at the moment could not understand... but he would soon.

"No, you won't..." Nagito murmured. "You don't need to use empty words on me. I already know you won't-"

"Yes, yes I will."


	15. The Days That Were Wasted

Hajime never had a second thought about choosing to spend the rest of the month with Nagito. It was a thought that came to him the second Nagito was cleared to go home and rest. He suggested two reasons, one because Kokichi had hit rock bottom. And being around his dying brother was becoming too much for him to bear.

The second reason was a tie between Hajime finally realizing that Nagito was in love with him. But also the fact that Hajime deep down wanted to spend time with Nagito. He told himself it was for repenting for his wrongdoings against the poor boy, but a small voice in his brain would always be telling him that it was for another reason.

But he pushed that voice down.

When Hajime offered the idea to Nagito. The white-haired boy instantly agreed. Hajime was a bit surprised by his immediate response, but he still nodded and told Shuichi the plan. Shuichi took note, gave his brother one last look of something that Hajime could not interpret. And flew away, with Kokichi still crying in his arms.

The days following that decision went a little something like this. Hajime would wake up early, with Nagito in his arms. Every night, altho Hajime had insisted that he could sleep on the couch, Nagito would pull Hajime into his bed, and would snuggle himself so close to Hajime it became nearly impossible for Hajime to hide his embarrassment.

Nagito would do nothing more than that though. He would only wrap his arms around Hajime's chest and place his face on the burnet's chest. And then he would close his eyes and fall into the dreamless periods of sleep he had come to adore. Every day, Nagito would have to take so many medications that he often felt like he was turning into a pill. Sleeping medication, healers, nutrition supplements, iron pills, and anything else one could think of. Mikan had put herself to work to develop a strong pain reliever, for as the days of April passed by, the worse the headaches got.

Hajime knew that Nagito was weak, he could barely even stand. His body had so little energy, and he had turned so pale and skinny, that if he was a mortal, he would have died long ago. But since he was immoral and cursed. He had to suffer every waking hour of the day. So Hajime did everything he could to make Nagito sleep and lay down as much as possible.

The burnet would always be making sure that Nagito was getting rest. He often found himself staying up for hours, making sure that Nagito was sleeping comfortably and soundly. Which he thankfully was, but Hajime often found himself staying up late, not just making sure the boy was getting sleep. But the burnet in that time began to develop a habit of getting lost in the moment. Looking at Nagito.

Hajime felt like the more he stared at Nagito's pale sleeping face, the more he wished to touch it. The more he desired to touch his skin, and his hair. Hajime thought he known Nagito's face, but he found himself contradicted. Up close, Hajime came to know that Nagito had small faded freckles on his pale cheeks. They were all small and faded, perhaps they had formed from when he was a child? Hajime also came to realize that Nagito's eyelashes were as white as his hair, which would always make the boy smile. That certainly was odd.

But it wasn't just his features that Hajime had become entranced by, it was the expression he wore in sleep. It was not a fake smile or even a glare, it was a natural expression. One that gave the impression of peace, and calmness. In sleep, Nagito almost looked like he was okay. But, everyone must wake eventually. And as soon as Nagito's grey eye's opened once more, his calm face was replaced by one that was full of pain, and agony.

'Do you want to take a bath?' Hajime would ask. Sometimes Nagito would shake his head, but other times he would just press his head back into Hajime's chest and mutter something about being sleepy. So Hajime would give a nod, and let his head fall on the bed again.

They would both stay together in bed for many more hours, with Hajime occasionally having to carry Nagito to the bathroom. And during these bathroom breaks, Hajime would sometimes munch on a pocket snack. Throughout that whole month, Hajime had lost quite a bit of weight, but he was perfectly okay with it. Nagito had been starving for years, why did Hajime, who had done things worse than most humans, deserve to be full?

And for the rest of the day, the two would just lay in bed, sleeping, and breathing. Almost like robots. Exchanging almost no words between each other. But then at night, Nagito would tug on Hajime's shirt like a child and request a bath. The burnet would then carry Nagito down the stairs, and he would continue to hold him in his arms as he drew a bath. Hajime would then clean the sickly boy, dry him, and they would return to bed. Right after Nagito took about 50 pills.

And so it continued. Day's turned into weeks, and on the morning of April 27, Hajime was made aware of two things. One that Nagito had completely used up all his pills (Meaning that Hajime would have to leave the tower for the first time in almost a month) and the second thing being that the curse would take its final form the next day.

Had they even discussed it? Of course they hadn't, they never discussed anything. Even before the sleeping arrangements were made. But did Nagito know that Hajime knew? 'Should I ask... no! No! Why the hell would I do that?' Hajime thought to himself that morning, for he, as usual, had gotten up before Nagito. 'But... if it is tomorrow...' He began to shake at the thought. How had it crept upon him? How? Why hadn't he realized? Or prepared? What was going to happen?

Hajime felt himself squeezing Nagito's body closer to him as he thought these troubling thoughts. However, he had expected to wake Nagito from it. "What's wrong?" Nagito whispered, his voice was quiet and low for he had just woken up.

"N-Nothing, go back to sleep..." Hajime replied in a suspicious sounding tone. Nagito raised an eyebrow at this and continued to press the matter. But this time in a different way.

"I'm out of medication... maybe you should take a break and get it?"

"I don't need to take a break... I'm perfectly alright," Hajime responded firmly but also shakily.

"You've been in this tower for the past weeks Hajime. There's nothing wrong with going out for a moment or two..." Nagito whispered as he rubbed the fabric of the sheets between his fingers. Hajime pursed his lips at this statement. Did Nagito want him to leave? Had Hajime become a bother to him?

"Are you fine with me...?" Nagito gave a silent nod. So Hajime swallowed and sat up after he realized himself from Nagito's cuddling grasp.

So that was how Hajime found himself flying with stiff wings to Mikan's medical tower, with a hood over his spikey hair that would as he hoped to conceal his identity. When he did finally land in the medical office, Mikan was stuttering and tripping as usual, but she also looked as though she was in on something.

"W-W-What m-medicines d-do you n-n-need?" Mikan asked, as her gaze began to shift to the back entrance of her office.

"All of them..." Hajime murmured, as he too began to look at the back entrance. Mikan gave a nod and began to hand Hajime bundles of pills, her gaze still not leaving the entrance. "Hey, Mikan, is there someone there?"

"Oh... um, w-w-well... I-I d-don't think I-I should t-tell-!"

"I'm here Hajime.", Makoto said as he swung open the door dramatically. Instantly Hajime went into flight mode, snatching up all the pills and unfolding his wings in a heartbeat. He then tried to make a mad dash to the balcony door, but nearly dropped his things when he saw who was there.

Byakuya's team stood there, with their weapons drawn and their faces ready for a fight. Hajime felt his wings droop. They had got him, and the burnet could admit that they had got him good. There was nowhere for him to run, and now he had to talk to Makoto.

"If your thinking about running, we have every exit in this building blocked off... you're not getting out of this one Hajime," Makoto said fiercely. His tone sounded parched of patience, and he clearly was not in the mood for hide and seek of any sort. Hajime understood this, so with a shaky tone, he gave his response.

"F-Fine..." Hajime hissed, with fury in his voice.

Mikan let out a small squeak, seemingly terrified by the amount of tension in the room. She then quickly took her leave. The King and his creation stood in the room, suddenly alone. Hajime was glaring at Makoto, hate, and spitefulness in his glare. However, when Makoto looked at Hajime, all he could see was a tired, and scared boy. He let his eyes soften as he continued to look at Hajime. But after a few more minutes, he finally spoke. "I think you know why I'm here."

"Yeah, to tell me to go kill someone who loves me!" Hajime spat, trying to sound brave and unafraid. But he was afraid because he knew that whatever Makoto was about to say. It was not going to feel good.

"Well, why should you care Hajime? Considering that you don't love him... why should it matter if you're the one who kills him?" Makoto retorted.

Ouch.

"Because... because..." Hajime whispered his mouth opening and closing like a fish. Why did it matter? "Because I would be killing someone!" Hajime screamed. Which of course was a decent argument... but there was also another thing... and it had to do with a small, but surely growing voice in the back of Hajime's head. But it couldn't be that Hajime thought. "And because... he's my friend... and he trusts me..."

"Well, if he's such a friend... why are you not helping him?"

"Because normally friends don't fucking murder each other!" Hajime screeched in Makoto's face. He was trembling with fear and anger, for everything Makoto had said to him had struck all the wrong cords.

"But aren't friends supposed to help each other when they are in pain?" Makoto questioned even though he already knew what Hajime was going to say.

"I am working to make sure he is not in pain!"

"Well your efforts are not making much of a difference, because he is still in pain, and the curse has not been removed," Makoto snapped back.

"I'm trying Makoto!" Hajime cried. He beginning to grow desperate, he was trying, he was trying so hard. He was doing everything he could. "You think I'm not?"

"Hajime, your fighting against a battle that has already been won. Trying will bring you nothing but imaginary false hope... and you know that..."

But Makoto was right. Nothing was working. Sleep was not stopping Nagito's pain, it was only delaying him from feeling it. And the medication was only dulling the pain. It was not stopping the curse, hell, it wasn't even delaying it. Nothing could stop the curse. Hajime had known that from the moment he was told about it. So why had he pretended like it wasn't real? Was it to hide his fear of it? Or did he think that if he pushed it away, it would go away? Why had he wasted these days? Why had he thrown away countless days, just to lay in bed with a dying Nagito? Was it selfish? Of course. Or had Hajime truly believed that if he just tried to make it better, it would be made better?

"... He doesn't deserve to die..." Hajime whispered, as he turned away from Makoto, who had begun to reach out to place a hand on his shoulder. "He's done nothing wrong..."

"I know... he's a beautiful soul..." Makoto said gently, as he took a step forward. Hajime's shoulders hand began to rise and fall, rapidly. The burnets hyperventilation was rapid and full of anger and tears. And his gasps were like needles to Makoto's ears, Hajime's sobs gave him hurtful reminders of when the burnet was a boy. When he saw his first victim die. Makoto could never forget his face when he asked, 'Daddy, why did that little girl have to die?'. It broke his heart.

"Would it hurt...?" Hajime gasped out in between sobs. "Would he feel p-pain?"

"No... it shouldn't hurt him..." Makoto whispered as he placed a hand on Hajime's shaking shoulders. "You would just need to prick him... and then he can fade... away..."

Hajime dropped to the floor at those words. Coughing as his eyes continued to pool and drip with salty tears. Tears that were burning his cheeks, and making his stomach churn and twist. Tears that made his mind ache and spin. Why did it have to be him? Why? Why? Why?

And he had already run out of time. Both him and Nagito had run out of time, and days to spend together. They only had one more day. And it would be Nagito's last day alive. It would be his last birthday. His last day with a beating heart. His last day... with the person he had unfortunately fallen for.

Oh, where had the time gone?

...

Nagito's skin was warm. Perhaps it was the bathwater or maybe the fact that Hajime was blushing. But his skin was still warm against the burnets soapy fingers. But his skin was also bumpy, but that was because of his bones, which one could feel with ease. But Hajime so cleaned his bumpy hot skin. With care and love. Rubbing the suds of the scentless soap all over Nagito's back, like a mother to her newborn child.

"Hajime?" Nagito whispered.

"Hm?"

"Are you alright? You've been rubbing my back for ten minutes now..." Nagito said, with the hint of a giggle in his voice.

"Uh, um, yeah... I'm okay.", Hajime responded shakily as he shook his head to get out of his trance. Nagito nodded and gave a silent sigh at his lie. 'You're such a bad liar...' He thought bitterly as Hajime helped him out of the tub, and into nightclothes.

"Kokichi stopped by today," Nagito said as he played with his nightshirt.

"He did?" Hajime said, surprised, but also not surprised at all. His brother was going to be killed the next day, it would be almost cruel if Kokichi didn't come by.

"He looks pale... your brother too," Nagito said in a monotone voice as Hajime rubbed his white-haired with a towel, making it even puffier as well as wild. "And they both look thin... you too Hajime..."

"I'm eating, don't worry," Hajime replied as he rubbed cream on the white-haired miles back. It was still astonishing to Hajime how much the wounds on Nagito's back had healed. Mikan's medicine had done wonders for them. In the first week, the wounds looked as though they would never close up. But on that night, they looked like remains of petty scabs. But Hajime knew that scabs would never mean as much as what those wounds used to be.

Hajime carried Nagito back to his bed, placing him under the covers carefully and gently. Being sure to elevate his head with pillows, before handing him water, and having him ingest the pills. After ten minutes of silent swallows and many sips of water, Nagito was finally ready for bed.

"Hey, Nagito... I-I know I don't usually ask, but um, can I sleep with you tonight?" Hajime asked after returning from turning off the lights. He was embarrassed of course asking something like that. But he was thankful that Nagito couldn't see him blushing.

"Sure, that's fine..." Nagito said kindly. Hajime swallowed before climbing under the covers and laying next to Nagito. Who responded quickly by snuggling up against Hajime like normal. After the two had found their chosen positions, silence settled over them.

"You should probably sleep..." Hajime said in an offering tone.

"I'm not that tired," Nagito said, even though he clearly sounded tired. "You know what tomorrow is right?" Hajime felt his throat close at those words. Was he going to talk to Hajime about it? Oh, he prayed that he wouldn't. He already had suffered a full-scale breakdown in front of Makoto about it. He couldn't break down again, especially in front of Nagito. "I'm turning 19 tomorrow, can you believe it?"

"N-Nagito..." Hajime whispered, his mouth was dry as sandpaper. "I think... maybe you should know... t-that...tomorrow when it happens... I..." But he couldn't bring himself to say anymore. He couldn't do it. What more could be said? I'm going to end your life tomorrow? Nagito averted his gaze away from Nagito as that wrecked idea of a question entered his brain. But then something else caught his attention. "Nagito? W-Why aren't y-you wearing your ring?"

"I can't really wear something like that anymore, for some reason, also my fingers are too thin for it now. But I still carry it around," He said in a bored sounding tone. As though the subject of his ring was boring to him.

"And... those feathers?"

"No more talking about that stuff..." Nagito said his tone mimicking the sound of a sassy child. "Also, I want to do something tomorrow!"

"Do something, what do you mean?" Hajime questioned. There wasn't much that they could really do.

"I want... to show you a place. It's in the mortal world, so you'd have to fly us there. I took Kokichi there once when he was just starting to fly. It's in Japan, and it's called Ningyo-iwa. It's not very pretty during the day, but the sunset... oh my god... it's so beautiful Hajime. I love it there... so can we go?"

"Of course, it's your birthday... but what do you want to do during the day?"

"Somewhere cold, somewhere with lots of snow... or a place with snow and animals," Nagito whispered dreamily. Like a child writing a wish list. Hajime felt his face redden as Nagito continued to talk. Hadn't spoken this much in so long, Hajime had never really realized how much he loved to hear the white-haired males voice. Of course, he wouldn't be able to hear it for much longer... 'No don't think about it!'

"Y-You like animals?"

"Butterflies... but deer are really pretty, and they like berries... so we can feed them. I used to do that a lot with Kokichi,"

"Y-You sound like you want to do it with Kokichi..." Hajime said, instantly regretting it.

"Kokichi needs to get some sleep, and besides," Nagito looked upwardly into Hajime's eyes. Even though the room was dark, he still was able to find his face. How amazing. "I like doing things with you."

Hajime felt his eye well up with tears at that statement. Why? Why did he like doing things with him? The person who hurt him! The person who was the reason his life was ruined! The person who was going to put a knife in his chest! Why? Why?

"Hajime?" Nagito whispered as the burnet buried his face into Nagito's shoulder. To make himself stop crying. He couldn't let Nagito see the fact that he was pathetic enough to cry over something that was entirely his own fault. "Are you crying?"

"Please... just go to sleep..."


	16. Breathe

Animals were one of the few creatures who, in all their years of existence had never feared death. Which was why when the bringers a death were near, the animals came near as well. They would sniff the immortal beings, perhaps even rub their noses against them, and would allow them to feed them and scratch their ears. But they never backed away from them or turned their heads away in disgust from the Angels and Reapers.

And that was why Nagito found comfort in being near them.

Hajime had awoken on the final day, with stomach pains as well as the weight of a mountain on his shoulders. But he tried to put on a neutral expression when he woke up Nagito and prepared the boy for travel. Wrapping him in his green jacket, and placing gloves over his thin hands, and also covering his wild white hair with a grey hat.

"Do you have the berries?" Nagito asked as Hajime leaped off the balcony, and took flight into the skies of Hell. Carrying the white-haired boy, careful to keep his head elevated, and his arms tucked in. Hajime only nodded, for he feared if he spoke, his voice would break with fear and pain.

They walked through the streets of Hell, Nagito was trying to walk, much to Hajime's protest. Who insisted that he could continue to carry Nagito. The two were silently bickering with one another, but Hajime trailed off when he caught sight of two familiar figures walking towards them.

"I recommend you hit the fucking road!" Hajime sneered at Kaito and Maki, who instantly came to a halt at his words.

"We don't want a fight Angel, we have something to say..." Maki said in her normal cold tone, she wasn't the one who was going to say anything.

Kaito sighed and stepped forward. "Kokichi came to see us, and uh, we wanted to apologize for the way we treated you... Nagito."

Hajime's mouth fell open. This had to be some sort of joke! "That's the most half-assed apologize I've ever heard in my life! You think that someone would accept that-!"

"I understand Kaito," Nagito said gently. Hajime felt his jaw nearly dislocate at those words. Forgive them? After all, they had put him through? How the hell could they ever deserve forgiveness? "Thank you for apologizing, come on Hajime let's get going."

"What do you mean you understand?" Hajime demanded as he turned to face Nagito, as the two made their way onto the pathway through the lake of souls. "They have been harassing you and Kokichi for years-!"

"And they are apologizing for it, aren't people supposed to forgive each other?" Nagito replied simply like that philosophy was supposed to explain this drastic and extremely unfitting apology. Hajime wished to argue more, but he quoted himself when he saw how sincere Nagito's face was. After all, it was not Hajime who got to choose who Nagito forgave. Even though to Hajime the two didn't deserve it.

When the two finally came to the gate of Hell, Nagito once again climbed into Hajime's arms, for some reason, before they even passed Tsumugi. And as Hajime took flight, he could hear Nagito take a breath, one that almost sounded... full and happy. Hajime also felt happy hearing Nagito breathe like that, perhaps he felt free in the sky. Hajime did when he first learned to fly, he felt like he could go anywhere.

And even though, Nagito could not fly. He still found happiness in soaring through the air. Even in the arms of the person that had grounded him. Why did he sound so happy? Hajime could not tell, but if he felt somewhat happy in this horrible situation, Hajime too would at least pretend to be happy.

The burnet landed on the snow gently, careful to not make too much noise. The air around them was fridged and dry, and Hajime instantly felt his nose redden at the frigid air. They had landed in a forest that seemed to be hundreds of miles away from any humans, for trees surrounded them as far as the eye could see. Snow-covered their branches and the tweets of birds seemed to echo through the stillness of the forest. The snow was also falling, landing on the boy's eyelashes and melting as they blinked.

A sudden crunch of the snow made them jump a bit, but when they saw what made the crunch, their expressions softened. A small fawn had walked out from behind a bush, it's large brown eyes blinking and sparkling. Its head was tilted curiously at the Reaper and the Angel, clearly surprised to see two different beings together. But it seemed to pass by that thought as it softly walked over to Nagito's outstretched berry-filled hand.

As the fawn quietly ate berries out of Nagito's hand, Hajime was treated by its mother. Who had the same brown eyes as her baby, as well as the same curious but kind expression. The doe walked up to Hajime, sniffed his hair gently, and silently welcomed Hajime's hand as he began to scratch her ears. Which were furry and warm, but also wet from the snow that had fallen and melted on them.

No words were exchanged between the two boys during this silent meeting. It almost felt foolish to use words in a moment as peaceful and beautiful as this one. But that didn't mean that no emotions could be felt. Hajime could feel the happiness radiating off Nagito. The pure joy that feeding the fawn bought the white-haired boy was as adorable as it was saddening.

Saddening because he would never get to do it again. When the clock struck its dreaded time that night, Nagito would never be able to feed the deer again. He would never be able to scratch their brown and white ears and feed them berries over again. Because Hajime would be putting a knife in his chest, and that would be it. He would be gone.

And suddenly, Nagito felt Hajime's emotions turn dark and shallow.

...

They landed in Japan, somewhere between the outskirts of Tokyo and the countryside. They had not landed at the rock yet, but that was their next destination after a small break. Hajime left Nagito sitting on a small bench, one that was placed under a blossoming cherry tree.

Nagito let the pink petals drift down into his hands as he waited for Hajime. Smiling to himself remembering the fawn he had just feed, but also smiling at the clam scent that the atmosphere of the park gave off. It was a sweet and loving scent, one that seemed new as well as old and familiar.

"Want some water?" Hajime asked as he approached Nagito once more, carrying a bottle of water that he had taken from the local store. But no one who ever know that he did, for a spell, had been placed over it, and all things that Angels and Reapers could touch. The spell was a simple one, it was a masking one. It would allow an immortal being to take things from the human world, such as food, or other small things. And to humans, it would appear as though the team had never even existed.

"I'm alright," Nagito said quietly as another petal fluttered down into his palm. Hajime pursed his lips at that, wanting to comment on how Nagito should try and stay hydrated. But considering the day it was... if Nagito wanted to refuse water, he had every right in the world too.

Hajime sat down next to Nagito, taking small swigs of the water to avoid the awkward silence that had settled over the two of them. 'Small talk... small talk...' Hajime thought earnestly as he placed the empty water bottle down. "You like cherry trees too?"

"There pretty..." Nagito whispered. He was clearly in his world at the moment, so Hajime let them settle back into silence. And during this silence, he too began to observe to the scenery that Nagito seemed so captivated by.

The sky above them was a gentle blue beginning to fade into a pink, with clouds that looked almost grey drifting away from the sun, which was beginning to sink downwards. Hajime suddenly sprang up realizing the sun position, which startled Nagito quite a bit. They would have to hurry to see the sunset!

"Nagito! Come on! We're going to miss it!" Hajime cried as he, with no hesitation mind you, swooped Nagito from the park bench into his arms. Nagito opened to mouth to say something, but Hajime had already opened the vortex and begun his flight to the Ningyo-iwa.

The vortex felt suddenly heavy around Hajime's wings. Perhaps it was because he was in a hurry? Whatever the case, his own heart was beating incredibly fast. He felt urgent, as well as stressed, even more than he had already been. This was one of Nagito's last requests, and Hajime felt like if he could not even fulfill that, he was already more of a murderer than he already saw himself.

"Hajime! Don't fly so fast! It's alright if we're a bit late-!"

"No, it's not!" Hajime yelled over Nagito, which surprised the white-haired male. "You're going to see the full sunset Nagito! And I will not let you be late!"

Nagito pursed his lips, as his thoughts began to swell with one thought. 'I've driven you insane... haven't I? Hajime...' But Hajime could not read minds, so he only continued to fly at his lightning-fast pace, until he landed upon the beach.

The first thing that hit his nose was the smell of seaweed and salt. As well as the cool mist of the ocean, which seemed to coat his face in an instant. Making his hair go frizzy. The squawks of sea birds could easily be heard, along with the crashing sound of the waves.

The beach was a sort of glowing yellow and pink, and the sun's dim rays had begun to fall on the ocean's blue water. The sun itself was like a large golden lump of butter, one that seemed to be melting down towards the horizon line. They had made it just in time, which made Hajime take a large breath of relief. "Over there!" Nagito said in an excited voice. The burnet turned his head to where the boy was pointing and drew breath at the scene.

There was a large rock on the beaches sore, one that seemed to look over the ocean in a haunting sort of way. The rock was rather large and oddly shaped, but as Hajime got closer, and squinted at it more, he came to notice something about it. It almost looked like a person, but they're also seemed to be something else there. As if the 'Person' was holding onto something, or perhaps someone. Almost like a child clutching a doll of sorts.

"Do we... climb up there?" Hajime questioned once he had set Nagito down, in front of the base of the rock.

"Well, that's what we did... me and Kokichi that is..." Nagito added, as he took a step forward and seeded a part of the rock, placing his foot into a cranny, and attempting to host himself up. "When I and Kokichi first came here, Kokichi had to stand on my shoulders because he was too short..."

"Um, do you want some help?" Hajime asked tentatively as he watched Nagito struggle to climb up the rock.

"Hm? No, I'm... fine! Ha! See?" Nagito said happily as he climbed to the top of the rock, with much more effort than one would normally use. Hajime smiled at this however, Nagito's look of accomplishment was quite adorable. "Do you need help Hajime?"

"No! I can climb up a rock!" Hajime said dramatically. But he could not. Because no matter how many times he tried to find a way up that rock, he would slip and slide down. And by his third try, his rear was covered in sand and Nagito's giggles were out of control. "Okay please help me..."

"Sure thing!" Nagito giggled as he reached out his hand to Hajime. Hajime gulped at this. Nagito wasn't supposed to be doing anything big like this. Hajime knew for a fact that he weighed far more than Nagito, and Nagito was... "Hajime? Is everything okay?"

"Y-Yeah, um I think I can get up on my own..."

Nagito drew back his hand. Trying to hide the hurt on his face, yes he knew that Hajime had refused his hand because he was worried about his condition. But was that supposed to make it not hurt, because unsurprisingly it still hurt him? But he shook it off as Hajime joined him at the top of the rock.

"Made it just in time," Hajime said calmly. Nagito grinned at this, it seemed as if Hajime had caught sight of the setting sun, which was a marvelous thing.

The bottom of the sun had begun to dip into the horizon line of the ocean. It's golden light casting onto the seemingly endless salty water. Making it sparkle and reflect like a mirror, a mirror that seemed more beautiful than any other. The sky had faded from pink and yellow, to deep orange. An orange that seemed to have taken over the sky, with the only change in color being the sinking sun.

"Beautiful, huh?" Nagito said without looking over at Hajime, for he too was to absorbed in the sunset.

"Yeah..." Hajime whispered. He then began to chew on his lip for a question that had come to mind. "Um, Nagito? Can I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"Why did... you want to come here?" Hajime asked nervously, as he observed Nagito's face. Searching for a change in his expression. Sure Nagito had already said it was because he had gone there before with Kokichi, but if that was a memory shared with Kokichi... wouldn't he want to re-live the memory with Kokichi?

Nagito blinked once or twice, racking his brain for an answer to the burnets question. "Well... because the view is pretty, and... because I wanted to show you this place..."

"Why's that?" Hajime asked as he looked away to hide his linked cheeks.

"Well, I want to you to have a place," Nagito murmured as he gazed at the sun, which looked as though it's bottom part had been severed off. "A place where you can just... be at peace... or maybe remember... maybe even. Smile..."

"Smile?"

"Or cry."

"Cry?" Hajime scoffed. "Why would I need to have a place to cry...?"

"Couldn't say... well maybe I could. But Hajime, sometimes you just need to have a place to breathe. And cry... for whatever reason it may be. Sometimes, you just need to cry." Nagito said in a wise sounding tone.

"You being awfully smart today, anything else you want to talk about?" Hajime said sarcastically, in an attempt to cover up the fear in his voice. Why had Nagito brought something like that up? Did he know about what was going to happen? Did he know that in Hajime's belt at that very moment, there was a thin knife that would soon be piercing his chest? Because if he did... how did he know? No, he couldn't know!

"Two things actually," Nagito whispered. "Hajime... do you know why we Angels and Reapers can't collect the souls of animals?"

"No...?"

"Well... apparently it's because their souls have no labels. I heard once when passing by a mortal, that animals souls can't be taken by Gods of Death, because the gods are the images that humans strive to be. And the animals, well they follow no god, they only follow what they see as trustworthy and safe... they'll case after it... and hunt for it. Until the day that they die."

"And what happens when they die?" Hajime asked curiously.

"Well, apparently what the animals trust most is... the stars. So according to that lady, they become the stars in the sky. Guiding the animals and sometimes the people below them. Showing them how they came, the women said the same applies to lost souls..."

"Lost souls?" Hajime questioned.

"Souls that can't even enter heaven or hell, or even purgatory. Souls that have walked the path that one cannot find in the books. Souls that accepted death, souls that were bright but only saw themselves as dark. Souls-like that join the stars in the sky.", Nagito said as the sun almost halfway done setting. Hajime was agast, why was Nagito telling him this? Was he just spouting? Or did this legend mean something?

"A-Anything else you want to say?" Hajime asked as the sun began to dip further into the ocean line.

Nagito turned to face Hajime. His grey eyes were droopy and tired looking. His white hair blowing in the wind on the sea. His expression soft and kind, but also scared looked and calm. He looked like he was free but only with his body. It was as if, his body was falling into peace... but his mind still looked to be at war.

"Your eyes..." Nagito whispered as he stretched out his pale hand, and took Hajime's. Hajime flinched at this, for he had not expected for Nagito's hands to be so cold.

"W-What about them?"

"They're always going to be pretty Hajime... but... I think they look extra pretty tonight."

...

"Kokichi, please don't cry anymore..." Shuichi whispered into Kokichi's purple hair, as the two sat waiting in Nagito's room. Along with Makoto, Kyoko, Mukuro, Mikan, Byakuya, and Izuru. All under an invisibility spell. None of them wanted to be there, but they all felt like they should be there as well.

The room was silent. Well, if suppressed sniffles weren't counted. But Kokichi had every right in the world to cry. He was going to watch his brother die. A person who had been there for him from the moment he had opened his eyes. A person who's kindness seemed to flow in endless rivers. A person who had always experienced the worst, despite being one of the best.

"I don't want him to go Shuichi!" Kokichi wailed. "I don't want Nagi to die!"

"... I know...Kokichi..."

...

The streets of Hell were as empty as Hajime's heart. All that remained in the streets, were small piles of black feathers and abandoned food charts. The shutters on houses and apartments had been pulled closed. And in only a few living spaces was there a small bit of light peeking through.

"It's kinda weird," Nagito whispered, still wrapped in Hajime's arms. "I wonder where everyone is..."

Hajime couldn't respond to him. And he wouldn't. His legs were already turning to jello, and his heart was pounding against his chest so quickly, it felt like his ribs were cracking. Sweat was dripping down his face, and his stomach was churning and swirling. Every time he took a step forward, his body wailed for him to stop. His emotions were a war with one another.

It was all Nagito's fault. Saying something like that to Hajime, and looking like the most beautiful creature on earth. If he hadn't said that, then perhaps Hajime's legs wouldn't have felt like led. Perhaps if Nagito had not said that, Hajime would have been able to keep that little voice quiet. That stupid little voice. It had been taunting him from the very moment he had seen Nagito. It would always be reminding him of how beautiful Nagito was. Of how kind he was. Of how he made Hajime feel.

But he couldn't listen to it. Because he had already reached the point of no return. He was already carrying Nagito to his death, a death that would supposedly be painless, and relieving. Maybe to Nagito, but what about Hajime? What about Kokichi? They would not feel relieved, they would feel guilt like no other. Would they have to carry this guilt? How could they carry it? And how was Nagito going to react when a knife was placed in his chest?

Hajime tried not to shake as he took flight into the sky. He tried to breathe, but it felt like his lungs were sealing up. His wings were cramping as he continued to fly, most likely from not getting enough oxygen. But he could not bring himself to draw so much breath. For every breath, he took, made him feel like he was stealing them from Nagito.

Nagito.

Why him? Why god did it have to be him? Why did he need to die? Why was Hajime with every step towards the execution, falling in love with the boy? No, he couldn't be in love with him! He just was scared! And questioning his stance in the matter! Everyone would start to have emotions like this!

"Hajime? You look pale?" Nagito whispered as Hajime landed on the balcony of the tower. Hajime himself almost collapsed when he landed. His arms were aching and his legs were seconds away from giving in to the fear he felt.

"W-W-What time is i-it?" Hajime whispered as his body began involuntarily trudge up the staircase.

"I think it's around... 11:45?"

Hajime's knees gave in at those words. His kneecaps slammed into the edges of the stairs, sending a crackle of pain throughout his entire body. And then there was a settle but noticeable cracking noise. He felt Nagito instantly begin to try and free himself from Hajime's arms to make sure he was okay. But Hajime despite slightly cracking his bones, shakily stood up. And continued up the stairs, with vomit in his throat.

"H-Hajime? Stop walking! Put me down! Your hurt!"

"No! I won't put you down! I can carry you! I can at least do that!" Hajime screamed as he continued to trudge up the stairs, the sounds of his scrapping bones echoing out.

"Hajime... please don't put yourself through pain just to carry me!"

"Nagito... please... I can do this..." Hajime urged.

Nagito closed his mouth because at that moment a jolt of pain was sent through his entire body. He sunk his teeth into his tongue to not let out of hiss of pain which could and would worry Hajime. He could feel his time running thin. His body felt light and numb, and his very brain felt like it was bleeding.

Hajime finally came to the bedroom door's doorknob seemed to sear Hajime's skin the moment he touched it, and he almost retraced his hand. But he would only be making himself look scared as well as suspicious. But he couldn't help being scared. He was about to kill someone. Someone who had begun to make him feel an emotion that he had always feared.

But it could not be love.

Love was something that was made to be imaginary as well as unachievable. It couldn't be love that he was feeling, it was just pity. And above all fear. Never could it be love.

Well, it didn't make a difference what he felt. Because as he placed Nagito on his bed, it became quite clear to the burnet that it wouldn't matter in a few minutes. For he would still be placing a knife against Nagito's skin. And then he would press down, and Nagito would dieCrueltyly. And painfully.

Hajime's twitching eyes looked over at the small clock that lay on Nagito's bedside table. It read 11:52. Eight minutes left. Eight minutes until Nagito's death. The minutes were seemingly passing like seconds. Where were they all going? Why were they mocking Hajime? But Hajime's thoughts were silenced the second that he saw Nagito's body give a jolt of pain. The curse was coming to its full effect, not daring to wait for last goodbyes or emotions.

'Just let it end...' Hajime thought fiercely as he helped Nagito remove his jacket. 'Just stop it...' But how the hell was he going to do it? Was he going to inform Nagito of what he was doing? No, that would be awful. But how could you kill someone? How did mortals do it? Thoughtlessly? With no emotion at all? It seemed impossible to even imagine.

"Hajime? I just want to say-"

"C-Can y-you please close you e-e-eyes..." Hajime whimpered as he turned his back on Nagito. Unable to look into his beautiful grey eyes. For he feared one glance would bring him to tears of agony. He felt like his lungs were closing up, and he felt light-headed.

"Alright..." Nagito whispered gently. Hajime tried to take a breath as he turned around, but he only choked on it. Nagito was lying with arms slightly to the side, his lips sealed, and his eyes closed tightly. He looked so helpless, so opening and accepting of death. Why and how could he be so calm?

Hajime felt like drowning in tar as he approached Nagito. And as he reached into his pocket and pulled out the knife, his fingers felt as though they were being branded. His entire body was trembling and shivering. He felt like turning away, or maybe wanting to plunge the knife into his chest. But he had to do it.

Because in a few more minutes Nagito would be in a state worse than death.

Hajime climbed onto Nagito's lap straddling him in a way that would not allow him to move. Though Hajime knew he wouldn't, Nagito never ran away. Well, he never ran unless Hajime pushed him to run. All Hajime did to Nagito was push, and Nagito accepted the push. Almost welcoming it. Hajime was a cruel soul, he was no angel. That was Nagito. Everything had become Nagito.

Hajime felt himself going red in the face as he continued to not let air into his lungs. He could feel Nagito's heartbeat through his pants. He was alive. Breathing, and thinking. Maybe not thinking soon, but he would still be living. But he would not be alive. But at the same time, he would be alive. Hajime felt like he was going to pass out. Time was running thin, and he had to act. But he couldn't! How could he-!

"Hajime..." Nagito whispered. His warm calm voice slicing through Hajime's thoughts. Making the burnet shuddered.

"... breathe."

The knife was light in Hajime's hands. How could something so harmless looking be so life-ruining? Hajime had entered auto-piolet mode when he placed the knife's tip against Nagito's shirt. And as he pushed down on the blade, he realized what he was doing.

Nagito gave a small whimper of pain, as the blade pierced his skin. Which mad Hajime let out a choked sob as he yanked the knife out of Nagito's chest and pulled the white-haired boy close to him. Tear's falling onto Nagito's shirt like buckets of water. Hajime's sobs were sickening to hear.

"I-I'm sorry!" Hajime wailed into Nagito's shirt. His chest felt warm, most likely from the blood seeping out of the chest wound. "I-I'm sorry-!"

"Shhh, it's okay..." Nagito whispered earnestly, as he brought his hands up to stroke Hajime's shivering back.

"No no no no! Your g-g-going to die! I-I don't want y-y-you to die! You don't d-deserve to die!" Hajime heaved, as he squeezed the back of Nagito's shirt.

"Everyone needs to die at some point Hajime."

"No! Not you! You shouldn't have to die! You are sarcastic! A-And weird! And y-y-you have a t-terrible sense of fashion!" Hajime sobbed. "...B-But your... smart. A-And loving! And kind! And you're nice to me! Even when... I'm cruel to you! You always are kind! And goddammit! I don't want you to die! I don't want someone I care about... to leave!"

Nagito, despite having a stab wound in his chest, and disintegrating brain. Felt his lips tug upward at hearing Hajime's words. Hajime cared. He cared about him... suddenly... even the slightest fear of death melted away. Because... even though it sounded unreal and somewhat impossible. Hajime did care. And he meant it.

"Hajime... do you really care?"

"Y-Yes... I care! S-So p-p-please don't go! Please s-stay..."

"Ah... you know I can't stay... I'm already leaving..." Nagito whispered as his eyes trailed down to his legs. Which were disappearing, quite literally. Gold sparkles were traveling up his body, and everything they touched, also turned to gold. And began to slowly disappear.

"No! No! No! Stop!"

"Hajime, can I tell you something?" Nagito said as he lifted the burnets forehead off his shoulder in an attempt to look into his eyes. Which were tear-stained it was nearly impossible. "... my head never really hurt... at least... not when I was with you. Because you always made it better..."

Hajime's sniffles soften upon hearing that, but only worsened when he felt himself make contact with the bedsheets. Meaning that Nagito's entire lower half had been taken by the gold. "Y-You never g-got to live..." Hajime wailed. But at that statement, Nagito only gripped his face tighter and pulled his face closer to his own.

"Hajime... look at me..." Nagito whispered as he felt his torso begin to turn into nothing. The burden peeled open his eyes involuntarily. He did not want to see Nagito's eyes, but he always found himself looking into them never the less. "Every second I spent with you... made up for a million lifetimes..."

Hajime fell silent at that. He couldn't bear it anymore. Being told all these heart-wrenching things as Nagito was slowly dying. But Nagito continued to hold on. Even though his lower, and almost his upper body had disappeared, he still held on.

Nagito pressed his forehead against Hajime's. Hajime pressed back. Nagito felt paper-thin, but he was still there.

"Nagito..." Hajime whispered. "Where will you go?"

"Who knows... but... where ever it is... I'm sure... that I'll be able to see you." Nagito whispered. Before pressing a small kiss onto Hajime's forehead. His arms were nearly gone, and he felt the back of his head fading away, he felt tired, but also wide awake. He didn't feel like he was leaving, but he knew he was. But it didn't hurt, it was just like falling into a dream. He didn't know what he was going to dream about, but he was sure that it would be a good one.

"... Goodbye Hajime..." Nagito whispered as he felt his face fade away. He could not feel the burnet's face anymore. And his vision was blurry, Hajime's olive eyes could not be seen. And he could feel nothing, but the stillness of the air. But he had something he wanted to say. But he was running out of time! Would he make it? Could he say it?

"I love y..."

And then he was gone.

Hajime felt a chill rush over his entire body. Suddenly his arms hovered in the air with nothing to hold. And the only thing floating in the air in front of him was a couple of remaining gold flakes. Which soon dissolved into the air which held nothing but atoms that no one would ever be able to see.

But then he felt something drop into his hand. Two things. A ring and a single black feather. Both felt cold. And meaningless. But it only took a second or two for the ring to start playing something.

"May this will be given to Hajime-"

And then the burnet let out a scream. A scream so full of anger and despair that it made the invisible people in the room shudder and shake. A scream that made Kokichi sink his nails into Shuichi's tear-soaked shoulder. A scream that made Junko, who sat in a cell at the bottom of hell give a lustful shiver. A scream that made every being in the afterlife turn their heads in confusion. A scream that made even the mortals shiver. A scream that made Hajime himself clutch his arms with agony, and hate. A scream that lasted for what seemed like years. And one that was only silenced when Hajime had run out of oxygen. And only then did the tears begin. And then the words, which were slurred by an indescribable pain.

"Come back! Come back! Come back! COME BACK! Please... don't go..."


	17. The Daughter

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last chapter!!

Hajime was supposed to be at a therapy appointment. But because he felt like he could never show his face there again. And also the fact that he couldn't miss what had just happened. He pushed his concerns about missing his appointment aside and continued to worry about his daughter falling to her death.

"Chiaki! I said don't try any flips!" Hajime cried as he nervously extended his arms, as his seven-year-old daughter did dangerous looking moves in the air, on her already fully developed wings. "We were only supposed to learn wing folding today!"

"I can already do that Dad!" Chiaki called back, as she continued to rotate in the air. "Uncle Kokichi already taught me!"

"Of course he did- Chiaki!" Hajime hollered as his young daughter suddenly made a large plummet towards the ground of the training area. The burnet took to the ground at top speed, beating his wings so fast that the air around them dropped many degrees. When Hajime caught Chiaki mid-air, she wore a confused expression on her face.

"What happened?"

"I think you fell asleep again..." Hajime said with an eye roll as he placed his daughter on the safe ground. "Chiaki, I think we have to go to bed a little earlier."

Chiaki gave a small sigh at that. But soon moved on to spinning around like a ballerina on the tip of her pink dress shoes. Her light blue dress spinning around in a circle with her hair bouncing playfully as she continued to spin. She was a beautiful girl. She had short pink-grey hair, that was cut in a way that perfectly framed her face. She was rather pale, but her cheeks were always tinted a light pink, no matter her mood. Which was kind and loving, as well as playful and calm. But her sympathetic pink eyes made her look smart. Which she was. And when she took flight on her silky grey wings, she seemed to remind Hajime of someone. Someone who too wore the same kind look on their face.

"When are they gonna be here?" Chiaki question with her airy tone.

"They should be here soon, your uncles are always late to everything," Hajime said in a teasing tone.

"Was... Daddy late?"

Hajime froze at her question. Normally any question related to Nagito would make Hajime shut down, and or make him lose it. But Chiaki was the one who was asking, and Hajime never once had gotten angry at her. It made sense that she was curious about her father. Sure she would never be able to meet him, but that didn't mean that she couldn't know.

"No, your Father was never late..." Hajime whispered.

"Chiaki" A voice called making the two spin around. "Dad! Put me down I wanna say hi!"

"Don't kick me, Katie!" Byakuya snapped at his daughter, who was eagerly kicking against her father's grasp.

"Chiaki!" Another voice cried before eagerly pulling the girl in question into a tight hug. Chiaki instantly hugged her cousin back, as Katie broke free from Byakuya's grasp and joined the two in the embrace.

"They missed each other," Shuichi said with a grin on his face as he made his way over to Hajime, with Kokichi by his side. The two seemed to have barely changed in the year that had passed. Shuichi still wore his dark attire, and Kokichi still had spiky purple hair. But their faces had gone a bit looser, considering that they had a child who was so hyper it was sometimes laughable. But never the less, they looked happy. And that seemed to reflect on their son Ben, who had become their world right after Chiaki became Hajime's.

"It's only been a month..." Byakuya said, even though he knew it was true. Hajime's old mentor had changed quite a bit. His appearance was more relaxed and he no longer spent his whole day in a fancy suit, and he no longer was so focused on his team, because they too had begun to settle down. Hajime would admit that he found it surprising that Byakuya wanted to have a child, especially because he intended to raise it alone. But it turned out to be a good thing for him. Never had Hajime seen Byakuya as happy as he was when he was with his daughter.

"That's a while..." A kind and familiar voice said, making everyone turn around. Makoto stood in the arena, with a grin on his face.

"Makoto!" The children hollered simultaneously, as they made a charge for the King of Heaven. Nearly knocking him off his feet when they embraced him. The children loved Makoto, he was Chiaki and Ben's grandfather and Katie's godfather. Byakuya, Kokichi, and Shuichi had to dash forward to stop their children from crushing Makoto.

"Energetic as always.", A calm voice murmured.

"Kyoko, you came,"

"I missed the last meeting, it would be rude of me to miss this one as well," Kyoko said with a newly familiar soft smile.

Hajime too smiled. He was happy for Kyoko, she had become a new person in recent years. Her cold tone, and emotionless personality, had almost been wiped away. She had become a kind, and relaxed woman, and a wonderful leader. She no longer wore tight clothing. Well, that was a given, because she was extremely paranoid about her jacket buttons hurting her baby.

"How's little Chihiro doing?" Hajime said in a baby-like tone, as he carefully rubbed his finger against the baby's cheek. Chihiro responded with a small 'Ah!' and attempted to playfully grab Hajime's finger.

"He's been sleeping better," Kyoko said warmly as she readjusted her hold on her baby. Who in response gave a small 'Ah!' one that sounded happy and loving. Chihiro was a beautiful baby, with large eyes, and caramel-colored hair. "Makoto tries to learn, but he can barely change him."

"I was the same with Chiaki," Hajime said in a justifying tone.

"But at least your a fast learner- oh Mukuro!"

A flash of light had occurred, and everyone's attention had turned to the source. Mukuro stepped onto the floor, quickly folding her wings, and bowing. "Come now, you don't need to bow, your majesty," Makoto said kindly, as he greeted the new ruler of Hell.

"Out of respect to you great rulers," Mukuro said. Her tone less firm than it used to be. But she was still a tough one. Well, not when it came to children that were so kind.

"Hello, Mukuro!" Chiaki said happily, along with her friends. Who all gave a bow to Mukuro, and then began to try and make conversation with her. Mukuro was hesitant at first, seeing how kind these children were to her, but after a moment she began to calmly converse with the children, who seemed overjoyed by their efforts.

"Say, Chiaki, your Father told me that your wings have been growing in very quickly. It looks like you've learned to fold your wings!" Mukuro said kindly to Chiaki, who's eyes instantly sparkled at the complement.

"I can fly too!" She said happily, as she let her wings open. "I can even do flips! Look look!"

"Chiaki! You've flown a lot today! You shouldn't be-!"

"I'm sure she can do it Hajime," Makoto said warmly to his creation, as he placed a hand a reassurance on Hajime's shoulder.

Hajime wasn't entirely convinced. Well, he had never been convinced. When Chiaki's wings had begun to grow in, the first thing Hajime did was take her Mikan, to have her wings analyzed to make sure nothing at all was wrong. But when Mikan found Chiaki's wings to be perfectly normal and healthy, the burnet still made sure that Chiaki did not receive even a scratch on her wings.

It was the combination of concern, worry, and the fact that Hajime had grown to be an overprotective parent. That made Chiaki, begin to ask about her other Father, the one who she had never seen. The first question she asked Hajime, made the burnet suffer a mental break down so extreme, that Chiaki, had to call Kyoko and Makoto for help.

The King and Queen of Heaven contacted a therapist. Who, saw Hajime the instant she heard his name. Her name was Sakura, and she was a kind woman with a fierce-looking face. And after only looking at Hajime, she could instantly tell he was in a deep state of grieving and loss.

Hajime didn't believe it at first. But as Sakura continued to explain, the more he realized. She had told him that it was perfectly normal to feel sorrow after a loss. But she then told him that she was convinced that the reason he was like this, was because he felt responsible for Nagito's death.

"Of course I'm responsible, I killed him..." Hajime responded dryly. He already knew that of course, he felt guilt. Who couldn't and who wouldn't? He deserved to feel guilt, he did not deserve to feel sadness, to feel sadness was a gift compared to guilt. "It's my fucking fault that he's dead."

"Hajime..." Sakura said calmly. "Did you see Nagito's face in his final moments?"

"No..." Hajime lied.

"Did you fully listen to his token's recording?"

"Yes..." He lied.

Sakura gave a little sigh. It was clear to her that Hajime was lying, the pauses and his expression gave it all away. "Hajime, do you think Nagito suffered?"

"Of course he suffered." Hajime snapped.

"Do you feel that your action of ending his life, furthered his suffering?"

"Everything I ever did to him caused him to suffer in return. So yes, of course, that furthered his suffering!"

"Hajime, The King, and Queen have made you come here because they fear your guilt. Is driving you mad, to the point that you will watch over Chiaki, and never let a thing happen to her," Sakura said, in her patient tone, making Hajime grind his teeth.

"I want to keep her safe! Is that a problem? Am I just supposed to sit back and let her break her wings in half?" Hajime yelled, as he furiously gripped the arms of his chair. "I destroyed Nagito's life! And Chiaki is his daughter and mine too! And I will put a knife in my gut the day that she suffers on my account!"

"Chiaki! How did you already learn that?" Mukuro called up happily as Chiaki made her small turn arounds in the air.

"I don't know!" She called. "It just came to me!"

"Chiaki! I think that's enough!" Hajime called gently, trying to hide the fact that he was about to jump out of his skin with fear. Hajime however, did flinch when he saw the saddened look on Chiaki's face when she swooped down from the air. Landing perfectly on her feet.

The children, Shuichi, and Makoto all rushed over to the girl, to offer their congratulations. "Oh my, she has grown quite a bit!" Kyoko said warmly as she walked over to Mukuro. "Mukuro, did you ever get a chance to hold Chihiro?"

"Oh, no... that's quite alright..." Mukuro said giving a little bow and trying to walk away.

"Mukuro," Kyoko called softly, making the Queen of Hell come to a halt. "It's alright... please hold him."

Mukuro was frozen in her place. She felt uneasy by Kyoko's request, and she had the right to. She had been awful to Kyoko many years ago! And children, we're not a strong point for her, plus, this baby was so lovely. The Queen felt like she would be tainting Chihiro's beauty if she was to hold him. But since the Queen had asked, she knew she could not refuse.

As Chihiro was placed into Mukuro's arms, she instantly felt worried. Suddenly a fragile baby had been put in her care, if she was to even let slight harm come to it, she would never be able to forgive herself. But Chihiro seemed to care less about being hurt, for when his large eyes meet Mukuro's worried ones, he let out a small giggle and stretched out his finger. Asking for Mukuro to grab hold of it. Mukuro felt her eyes widen at this, and without even realizing it, she too reached out her finger. One that was much larger than Chihiro's of course, but the baby still wasted no time and grabbed Mukuro's finger playfully.

And The Queen of Hell smiled so wide that her tears threatened to spill from her eyes.

Hajime smiled too at the scene, never in all his life had he seen Mukuro so happy. "How's it been, Hair Boner?"

"Still calling me that Kokichi?" Hajime said as he rolled his eyes.

"I think it's a good name... better than Hajime at least," Kokichi said in a joking manner, as he slightly elbowed Hajime. After that, they settled into a small silence. Hajime had re-focused his attention onto Chiaki, making sure everything was going alright. Kokichi had noticed. "Shuichi told me about what was going on... you know... with you and Chiaki."

"I'm trying Kokichi, I've been to the place a few times,"

"I heard you stormed out last time," Kokichi said calmly. "Something about... his token?"

Hajime flinched at the mention of it. Remembering it was not a pretty sight either. Sakura had been instructing Hajime to write a letter, one that he was supposed to 'Read' to Nagito. When he asked what to write about, Sakura suggested he discuss what he had learned from Nagito's token Which made the brunet give an uncomfortable flinch. And when Sakura began to question him about it, he had gotten angry, of course, and stormed out.

"You never listened to it, did you, Hair Boner?" Kokichi said with a tone a little too sweet for Hajime's liking.

"I... I couldn't Kokichi..." Hajime whispered as he pressed his hand to his face. "The year after... I was just done with doing nothing. So I put two and two together and pressed the feathers together. And then Chiaki came... and I became so... happy... and I know that listening to that recording... will only bring me sadness."

Kokichi didn't respond at first. But after a moment of processing Hajime's words, he spoke. "How did you know that Nagito liked the name Chiaki?"

"When they were cleaning out his room, they found his books, and they brought me one. It was some sort of murder series, and he had written all over it. It was mainly his predictions on the cases and theories on the characters. But he always seemed to be rooting for one character. And when I read the book, I realized how much she resembled Chiaki... so... I thought it would be the perfect name..."

"I remember those books..." Kokichi said, before drawing a breath and beginning to talk again. "Hajime... I'm going, to be honest with you, but I will never be able to fully forgive you for what you put my brother through.", Hajime didn't wince, for he knew he had no right too. "I'll never be able to understand why he cared for you so much, or how he never once told you no or stopped you in any way. To be perfectly honest, I hated you so much back then... I can barely describe it now."

Hajime didn't say anything.

"...but... I want to thank you."

"Huh?" Hajime exclaimed with shock.

"Hajime, you may suck at practically everything," Kokichi said in a very honest tone. "But, you're an amazing Dad. And I hope that Chiaki knows that." Hajime was stunned, did he just receive a compliment... from Kokichi? It sounded stupid just thinking about it! "Oh, and speaking of Chiaki..."

"Dad!" A small voice called from across the room, as its owner ran towards Hajime. "Dad we have to go! Uncle Shuichi says that the suns gonna set soon- Woah!"

In that moment of rush, Chiaki felt her feet slip backward. Causing her to fall forward, and almost collide with the ground. If of course, it wasn't for her overprotective Father, who caught her mid-fall with such speed, everyone gasped. "Chiaki! Are you okay? Your not hurt are you? Chiaki did you hurt your ankle... why are you laughing?"

"Because... your so funny Dad!" Chiaki said as she continued to giggle, at her Father's terrified expression. Hajime felt the urge to scold her, but she hadn't been hurt, and she was happy. So he suppressed the urge.

"Yes, very funny... alright. Are we still going?"

"Yep! Yep!" Chiaki cried excitedly as she leaped onto her Father's back, only to be quickly moved to his arms because Hajime was worried about Chiaki falling off.

"Where are you guys going?" Makoto asked.

"Today's Daddy's birthday! And I want to give him his present!" Chiaki said with a smile.

Instantly Hajime went stiff. How had he been convinced into doing this? Chiaki probably gave him puppy eyes... but still! How had he agreed to take Chiaki to that beach, on Nagito's birthday none the less! But now he had to take her, for if he didn't everyone would know, and Chiaki would probably be upset.

"That sounds... nice..." Kokichi said carefully, he was not sure what to think of the situation.

"Of course!" Chiaki exclaimed as she turned to face her Father. "Come on Dad we have to hurry!"

Hajime glanced around at everyone in the room, reading their expressions carefully. But to his shock, none of them were hateful. Makoto and Kyoko were smiling, as well as Mukuro, and Shuichi. Kokichi wore a half-smile on his face, but he also looked somewhat sad, but it was a sadness that was difficult to understand for Hajime. Byakuya himself gave a nod to Hajime, who swallowed, nodded back, and took into the vortex.

...

"Dad! Can I please take off my shoes? There's so much sand!" Chiaki whined as she tried to avoid the endless sand piles.

"No Chiaki, you might cut your foot on something, there's trash on the shore," Hajime replied as he too tried to walk in a way to not get sand in his shoes.

"Please! I promise to be careful!"

Hajime sighed, as he heard the voice of Sakura saying something about giving Chiaki more freedom as she grows up. But the fear was still there! But Chiaki was going to be the ruler of Purgatory, so she shouldn't be treated so weakly. "You promise to be careful?"

"Yep!"

"Alright, but you have to put them back on when we climb the rock..." Hajime began but he faded off as he saw Chiaki's joy. She had kicked off her shoes in half a second and she had already begun to run and prance down the shore, running to the clear ocean water. Kicking and splashing around in it, and trying to chase the small fish.

"Dad look at the fish!"

"You like fish Chiaki?" Hajime asked as he made his way over to Chiaki.

"Yeah, Ben says that if you make them mad they'll eat your toes off! Is that true?"

"No, you saw for yourself, those fish are gentle..." Hajime said as the two began to make their way towards a familiar rock. One that Hajime wished he could never see again, it's familiar shape haunting Hajime's eyes, and making him waver as he continued to walk towards it. But he snapped out of his trance when he saw his daughter begin to climb up the rock like it was nothing. "Chiaki! How did you learn to climb the rock so well?"

"I didn't need to learn, I just knew how to do it!"

Hajime thought about that, it seemed as though Chiaki always knew what to do. She always seemed to know something before she had even learned it. The girl was clever and kind. Two of the best qualities, but she could also be playful and loving, as well as harsh at times. But she was Chiaki, and Hajime loved her more than life itself, and she too adored her Father. Their relationship was perfect, but the child could always tell that Hajime was hurt. Grieving, and lost, and trying to ignore it by caring for Chiaki. Which made his daughter worry, and worry a lot.

But those thoughts were pushed aside as the Father and Daughter reached the top of that rock, the sun in front of them sinking into the ocean. The oceans breeze cold as well as warm and welcoming. The smell of seaweed, unpleasant as always. Chiaki plopped herself down next to her Father, starring out at the sunset, and waiting for the sun to set more.

"Chiaki... you said you wanted to give... your Dad... a present?" Hajime asked nervously.

"Oh right!" Chiaki said, as she reached into the pocket of her dress, and pulled out a folded sheet of paper.

"You wrote him a letter?"

"Yeah! Mrs. Hina told me that I should write a letter to Daddy for his birthday!"

Hajime smiled and frowned at this. He smiled and silently thanked Sakura's wife for being kind to Chiaki as she waited for her Father. But he frowned at the thought of Chiaki writing a letter, what was it going to say? Was it going to say something about him?

But those thoughts were pushed aside, as Chiaki, unfolded the letter. Which had been written in pink-colored pen on white lined paper, and had been covered in stickers. The letter was a bit messy, and Hajime instantly spotted spelling errors and bad grammar. But he nearly cried when he saw how much effort Chiaki had put into it. A letter for a person that she would never get to know.

"Okay, um, alright...

Dear Daddy,

Happy Birthday, Daddy! I hope you celebrating it were ever you are and I hope you know that I didn't mean to burn your birthday cookies. I'm writing this to you but I can't send it, which isn't awesome, but I bet you can hear me read it to you! I think at least...

Dad's teaching me how to fly right now! My wings have grown in so quickly they've broken records. And I want to learn how to fly through the vortex! So I can go to the mortal arcade myself! And maybe if I learn to fly well, Dad will stop worrying about me. So then maybe I can stop worrying about him.

Daddy, did you know that Dad sleeps without a pillow? Isn't that silly? Well, Dad doesn't sleep a lot anyway... I hear him at night. I don't wanna say too much, because he might get embarrassed, but he cries late at night. After he's put me to bed and told me not to come into his room.

But I always do. I know that you watching over us Daddy, but I think Dad misses having you right there. He likes to say he doesn't but I know he does. I asked Uncle Kokichi about it, and he said, before you passed, you two were always together.

I don't know much about you do I, Daddy? I guess not... Oh! I know that your name was Nagito, and you had white hair... and you liked bagels. And I think Uncle Kokichi also said reading. I like to read to Daddy! Byakuya says I'm good at it! Byakuya also says that I'm going to make a great ruler.

I can't believe that I get to rule Purgatory! Grandma Kyoko and Grandpa Makoto say that when I turn 15 they will be able to fully recreating Purgatory! And then I'm in charge! Dad says that I shouldn't be thinking about it right now... but honestly, I can't wait!

I hope you are proud of me! I don't know if Dad's proud of me quite yet, well maybe he is. He's always looking after me, so I can't tell if he's proud but can't show it. Or if he doesn't think I'm good enough yet, so he protects me. Well, that's what Katie and Ben said.

But I think Dad's just worried, and I also think that if anything were to happen to me. Dad would probably lose it. I heard about what happened to your wings Daddy, I'm sorry that happened. I think that's why Dad made sure nothing was wrong with my wings. I understand now why he's so worried. It's because I'm all he has in this world.

It's sad to think about, but I think Daddy if he knew as much as I did that you still watching over us. He would be a lot happier, well that's what I hope anyway...

Well anyways Daddy, I hope you heard me. And I hope you know that Dad has not forgotten you, and even though we've never met, I won't forget you! I have a good memory! And you will never leave it.

Watch over Dad for me,

Chiaki, your Daughter..."

But as Chiaki finished reading her letter, she let out a large yawn. And her odd sleeping took effect, as she slumped down, falling into a calm sleep. Which Hajime was almost thankful for. Considering that Chiaki had already seen him cry enough. And he was trying hard to resist crying at that moment.

She certainly was sharp. She had seen and observed Hajime's every emotion and had found out a conclusion that had taken Hajime years to realize. But she was also quite the believer. Hajime himself thought the idea of Nagito still being able to watch over him, was ridiculous. Heaven and Hell were the only places a soul could go. And Nagito's soul had been permanently erased from the world. Hajime himself had seen too it.

Hajime took the letter in his hand and quietly folded it, trying not to disturb Chiaki. But when he had put everything away, he was suddenly faced with the thought of the two things that sat in his pocket.

A chipped and faded black ring, and a letter that he had written as a joke.

But despite this, Hajime still reached into his pocket and pulled the two out. It was a bit hard to see in the fading sunlight, but Hajime could still see the words that he had written during his breakdown. But he felt drawn more to the ring.

The ring was smaller than Hajime had remembered it, but it was still familiar. It's old black paint and a slightly bent shape was haunting. But what made Hajime nearly lose it, was the fact that his hand brought the ring cupped in his hand up to his lips. And he almost let out a scream as he spoke his name to the ring. Which instantly glowed, and began to play a recorded that had been recorded almost eight years ago.

"May this will be given to Hajime.

Hey Hajime,

Hopefully, if your hearing this, I'm already dead. And you're not just listening to it while you waste your years sitting next to the shell of me. And if you are, just leave me Hajime. It's not worth your time, plus, your going to be raising a kid. Because as you know, I and you were just tools to help fix Purgatory. But... ah... I probably shouldn't talk about it like that. Because, well, if this feather magic stuff works, you should find happiness with it.

But I bet your dying to know right now why I never told you the truth about... you know... the curse. Well, I did it selfishly, of course, I never wanted to be pitied by anyone. I don't deserve pity, and I know you told me not to say that, but I would rather suffer a curse a million times worse than this than have someone worry about something like me.

But I guess it doesn't matter now. Because this injury has probably made Queen Kyoko realize the truth. I knew she made Shuichi try and gather information about my behavior. I wanted to stop it, but I knew if I acted I would only make myself more suspicious. So now I sit knowing that my plan to fade away had hit the group. But I guess I was stupid to ever think I could hide it.

But, I did try and hide it. I tried so hard not to worry Kokichi. Of course, I doubt it fully worked, but I still tried. And I thought it would be easy for you because I knew that no Angel would ever care for the creation of Junko. But it was almost like a reverse effect.

Because even though one part of me wanted to push you away, the other one was captivated by you. Never had I met someone like you Hajime. Stubborn, not so bright, and so focused to prove that they're more than what they've been created for. You were always trying to appear strong, even though you were never the strongest. But that's what made me want to be near you. You were such a wonder to me, and I selfishly found myself wanting you. I guess that showed the first day when I climbed on top of you, Junko had made it so I would do something embarrassing on the first day. But I guess my heart decided to join in on the fun.

I'm sorry about that. I don't think I ever really got to say that to you.

You were always the one apologizing to me. Even though I did not deserve it. I did not deserve you Hajime, I know as I'm recording this you probably see yourself as the most horrible being in the universe. But that is me, I'm the horrible being. Because I was selfish with you, the night of the party when you were drunk and asked for us to have sex. I should have said no. But some crazy part tricked itself into believing that you wanted to. I should have never wanted you Hajime, because now because of my stupid heart, and compliments. You're going to have to kill me, but you also know that I have fallen for you. And that's why I am the monster Hajime.

But I can only hope that you're not falling for me.

Hajime, I'm going put what I want for our child on the feather that you'll use. I know we decided on this choice, but that selfish part of me still wants us to raise the child together and decided things for it together. But a monster should never raise a child. Especially the girl that I want you to care for.

Take care of her, Hajime. If everything is going how I expect it to be going, you should be raising her. And I know that you'll keep her safe. I also guess that you might keep her a little too safe. But it's out of my hands. Hajime, could you maybe name her Chiaki? I've always loved that name, and I feel like you might like it too.

Also, I know I'm asking too much, but could you please keep this ring close to you. It's yours after all... Mukuro told me. She said when we were just babies, we were both shown to the rulers of each place. Junko wasn't there, of course, so Mukuro brought me. And I was crying, and if Mukuro's not lying, she told me that you pulled a ring off Byakuya's finger, and tried to give it to me. You didn't know why we were there, you didn't know what I was, but you tried to help me. And I don't know if this ring will be of any use to you from this point on, but, I still want you to have it. Because once again, I selfishly want to be near you.

Well, that's all I have to say. That's not true, I have just about a million things to say. To Kokichi, to our child, to Junko. Truthfully I only have one more thing to say to you, and you probably already know what it is if you've been paying attention. But I'll still say it because I might never be able to say it again.

I love you Hajime...

It hurts to say... love hurts Hajime... I hope that you will never be pained by it...

And that is my last wish..."

"Your right Nagito..." Hajime whispered to the stars which had finally made their way into the sky. "Love does hurt." The burnet felt himself unfolding his letter. "But... so do your words."

"Dear Nagito,

I have no idea why I'm writing this. Maybe it's because I just want a sense of relief to come after I finish. Which I doubt will happen, because I thought the same thing would happen if I cried. But I guess that's a myth because no matter how many times I cry, and curse Junko. It still hurts... god it hurts so much. But I try and hide the pain like you hid the pain. I think you influenced me Nagito because I've trained myself to hide the pain, especially in front of Chiaki.

Oh my god, Nagito. Chiaki. Few things in this shitty world mean anything to me anymore. But when Chiaki came into my life, with those big pink eyes and that stupid smile. I felt something other than pain for the first time in a million years.

She has your smile Nagito and your brains. She's nothing like me of course, but the way she sleeps is not like either of us. But I guess you put something on your feather that would allow her to get lots of sleep. Though it is a little scary that she can fall asleep while flying. Nagito, I wish you could see her fly. She can do more than I can, and she has your face when she flys. She looks so free, it's almost scary. Can I tell you something? One time she followed Kokichi down to Junko's cell, and after Kokichi had cursed her out. She came out and said:

'Miss, why did you kill my Daddy?'

And when I found her, Junko was crying.

She's too damn brave, I think that's the problem. Me? I'm afraid that anything will hurt her. 

Chiaki doing anything is scary to me, crazy huh? She's been alive for seven years, and I think the only time I left her alone was when I was called to the mortal world to collect people who had died from a pandemic. But even then I made Shuichi promise not to take his eyes off her. I've gone insane, haven't I? That's probably why I'm forcing myself to write this letter.

I'm sorry I never played your token Nagito. It was something I should have done... but I refused, and only sank deeper into sadness. Pathetic right? Don't define it, you know it's true. The fact that I couldn't let go of you after eight years, the first year consisted of me just crying to myself about how wicked I was, Byakuya was the one who told me to get a grip of course. But I still have no grip.

But it's not because I feel like a murderer. Or even because Chiaki keeps asking me about you. But because I never got to tell you something. It was something I realized the second I put that god forsaking knife in your chest. It's the most cliche thing in the goddamn world, and I have no right to feel it. Not after everything I did to you.

You always said you were trash Nagito, but I was the one who was trash. I was the one who caused all the problems because I was stuck up in my world. A world where I was the best, and a world where I could avoid the reality that was not the best. In reality, I was the worst, I was stuck up, and cruel. And I never thought twice about what you might feel, or think. I didn't consider you, it was always just me me me me me.

Which is why I want to die for feeling this. I want to disappear for what I have done. In truth, the only thing holding me down in this world is our daughter. Who I don't deserve, I deserve nothing. But she makes me live, even though I don't want to. Even though I try and resist, I always find myself alive, because of her. She reminds me so much of you.

I see your beautiful face in hers.

Nagito, you were always going on about how I had pretty eyes. But I don't think I ever told you this.

Your eyes are beautiful too."

Hajime's throat was tired from all his talking, as well as tears. And he was wobbling a bit as he scooped Chiaki into his arms, resting her head on his shoulder. He flapped down gently from the rock, careful not to wake his sleeping baby. He held his letter in his hand, the letter was crumbled and tear-stained, but he needed to send it, somehow. So he quietly walked down towards the shore, the sound of the waves making his heartache.

When he reached the water, he took a breath and placed the letter in the water. He then gave it a little push and silently watched it begin to make its way out to the crashing ocean. The burnet stayed crouched under the moon until he could no longer see the wet paper. He felt his wet eyes trail up to the moon, which was full and beautiful. But he found the stars to be prettier.

He smiled at a sudden memory, the time when Nagito had told him about the lost souls. He said souls that had no place went to become stars. Stars that would guide other lost souls. It was a nice story, but Hajime at that moment, almost believed it to be real.

"I love you!" He cried out. His voice ringing out at the vast sky. "I love you Nagito!"

Of course, the stars said nothing back. But Hajime suddenly felt full, he felt relieved almost. He had confessed, even though it was to no one. He felt like his words had reached Nagito, where ever he was. It sounded like a pipe dream, but he still believed it. Maybe Hajime had just made himself look like a fool, but if he was a fool, at least he was a happy one. And through his tears, he smiled as he stood and began to walk away.

But at that moment. Altho it was a million miles away, in a different universe maybe. A single star, one that was full and bright, smiled. Even though some thought it impossible, that star smiled. And it seemed to whisper something, something that sounded almost fictional, but beautiful.

'Me too, Hajime...' The star whispered.

And Chiaki raised her head for a moment, for she had heard it, but then placed her head back down again.

And broke out into a small smile.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you guys enjoyed it!!


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